Walking to the library...

While walking to the library this afternoon, evidence of a beautiful fall day was all around me:

- a comfortable breeze blowing
- dry leaves crunching under my feet as I walked down the sidewalk
- people out raking leaves in their yards
- the smell of a fire burning - it just had that fall fire smell
- almost-completely-bare trees
- sunshine peeking through clouds in light blue sky
- the temperature was neither too cold nor too warm

Hitting a wall...

Sometimes others can beautifully put into words what is tumbling around in my mind and heart... Here is an example of that...

But there is such good news when we miss the obvious and hit the wall, on the days we need rescuing even from ourselves, the times we are fragile and vulnerable and need to be cupped with care. HE is there waiting. Not a sparrow or a nearsighted finch or one of us falls to the ground without Him there ready, watching, tender, kind. It is this love, this grace that teaches us how to truly fly free.

Click here to read the entire blog post.

Inspirational...

Am I building a legacy?...

A few weeks ago, I was online and a headline caught my eye - "American teacher killed by student in Northern Iraq." I have a friend who spent some time in that region, plus I had a feeling that this might be a like-minded worker, so I clicked on the link.

Since then, I've been intrigued, challenged, and encouraged by this young man's story. I was surprised by how many details of his work I could find online - even soon after the incident. The little bit I've read online about this man shows his faith, as well as his love for his students. Here's a link to one of the more recent articles I've read, and probably one of the most inspiring.

No Heat, No Hot Water, but Thankful

I was just about to sit down and write this post when I heard the rumbling of a large engine outside (chalk up my ability to identify various engines by sound only to my farm girl childhood:). With a bit of hope and a "Please Lord!..." I went to the window to check. And sure enough, there in the driveway is an oil truck! Thank You, Lord! PTL!

Now, let me back up and write what I had originally planned to, so that you understand why this is SUCH a good thing. :)

Yesterday afternoon, our landlord (who lives downstairs) knocked on our door. He explained that we (as in the whole house = 3 apartments) are out of fuel oil. The tank is empty. Normally, when the tank gets down to about 30% full, they (the landlord & lady) call the oil/fuel company to order more. Normally, the company delivers the oil about a week later.

Not so this time. The landlord called the oil company for the first time about 2 weeks ago, and has made several calls since then. As you might have seen in the news, we had record low temperatures here in Europe a few weeks ago. This increased the demand for heat and therefore oil, which means more people needs their tanks refilled. In addition, the landlord explained, Russia is not sending enough oil here for political reasons. (I'll admit - I don't know exactly what he meant by that or what is going on - I'm merely quoting.) He was hoping for an oil delivery today, but obviously he could not make any promises. (I believe they also made another call to the oil company this morning.)

What does this mean for us? No heat and no hot water. The landlord asked us to turn our heat off yesterday in hopes of preserving what hot water there was. An inconvenience, yes. But I know that it could be so much worse. We still have water, after all, and electricity. Water for dishes can be heated using the electric kettle. We have blankets, layers of clothing, candles, and an electric heating pad. German washing machines heat the water themselves, so I can continue to catch up on laundry. I feel a bit "grungy" without a shower today, but I can survive. I was beginning to wonder what I/we would do if this continued into tomorrow when I heard that glorious rumble of the oil truck's engine!! :) ...

Thank you, Lord, for how You take care of us and for everything you've blessed us with!

Prayer Quote

"You can do more than pray after you've prayed, but you cannot do more than pray until you have prayed."
John Bunyan

Why I do what I do...

“I truly believe this can be the beginning of a

new season for the church. There are not too

many ways we can impact this generation in

Moldova like English camps.”

A Moldovan leader

(quoted in the TeachBeyond Annual Review 2011)

I'm thankful to have a tiny part in, and be a spectator to, what God is doing through English Camps and other educational ministries around the world.