Cactus Flower

In one of Paul's New Testament letters he gives a long list of all the bad things that had happened to him during his missionary travels.  His list was to make a good point.  As I have been considering our last term of missionary service (2009 - 2013), I considered the length of such a list for me.  But I decided on a more positive list and found that there were at lots of "firsts" during the past four years which is quite remarkable actually since my husband and I have been on the field for twenty some years now.  I guess you can teach old dogs new tricks!  In spite of being veterans or old-timers we can still be fresh and innovative.  My husband could add more to this long line, but the items in this list are things in which I actually participated or initiated.  Some of these were things I had wanted to do for a long time and I suppose the time was right! first time to speak for women in Bahia and on the island first kids free retreats  fi...

Have you lost your happy place in life?  Seems that life is full of ups and downs.  Sometimes the downs all get strung together and we lose our hope and peace. This weekend hubby and I needed to get a new snapshot for our "business" cards {prayer cards}.  So out back we went with our eldest son to take some pics.  After several attempts we were able to get a good photo and soon enough we will have a new card. So many little things happen in any given day to bring a person down.  One of the best ways to stay "UP" is to remember to enjoy the little moments and smile as often as possible.  All the decisions and stresses of furlough can pile up if we let them.  I'm working hard to keep smiling and to keep happy. This weekend we had our first scheduled speaking engagement.  I was glad it was at a church only minutes away.  We had a lovely time with the pastor and his wife at lunch after the service and still got home in time for a li...