Wisdom's Words

We need winds and tempests to exercise our faith, to tear off the rotten branches of self-reliance, and to root us more firmly in Christ. The day of evil reveals to us the value of our glorious hope.

- Charles Spurgeon - 

Wisdom's Words

"...God's will for us, however painful now, will result in joy inexpressible and full of glory and the salvation of our souls."

-John Bloom-

Wisdom's Words

The truly great people in God’s eyes are not the great achievers but the great believers. They really believe God and therefore seek his kingdom first (Matthew 6:33). They know that they have no greatness of their own — all greatness is God’s — so they are free to be the servants of all (Mark 9:35). Because they know that here they “have no lasting city” (Hebrews 13:14) their eyes are set on the city with everlasting foundations (Hebrews 11:10). That’s where they lay up their treasures (Matthew 6:20), and so they are happy to forego them here as God calls. And the great believers are willing to go into foreign lands and live on the promises of God for the sake of God’s purposes to bless all the families of the earth (Genesis 28:14, Matthew 28:19–20).

In the end, the great believers are the truly great achievers. They build the house that God is building and therefore the greatest house and only house that will last (Psalm 127:1). What they have to show of their lives when they die may not look like much. But what they have built will go on growing forever. It will make an eternal difference; it will leave an eternal mark, the longest-lasting legacy.

-Jon Bloom

Wisdom's Words

Whenever we lose ourselves in prayer as to forget personal interest, and to plead for the glory of God, we have reached a vantage ground from which we can win anything from Him.  

- F.B. Meyer -

Other Spring Happenings

As I alluded to in previous posts, it has been a particularly full spring with a lot of extra activity.  How I thank the Lord for filling our lives with special people and events centered around his Kingdom and gospel!

I have been blessed to participate in our church's ESL program this last year.  It has been amazing to meet believers from other countries and share with one another the desires that God has put in our hearts.  Last Wednesday was the ESL graduation, and I was thrilled that Mom, Kathy, and Rachael could be there to experience it with me and meet my students from the last semester.  It was an awesome evening savoring ethnic dishes (prepared by the students themselves), enjoying music sung by a native from the Ivory Coast, and hearing what students learned in the various classes and presenting them with their graduation certificates.

Last Saturday, we attended the baby shower of a very special friend who is looking forward to adopting!  I was privileged to be the photographer for the event.

Throughout the last year, we have been blessed to host a ladies Bible study in our home on Monday nights.  Our times together studying the Word and praying for one another are precious memories to us all.  Last night was our last study until the fall, and we decided to take a group picture (though not everyone who usually attended was there).  What a special group of sisters in Christ!

So this more or less wraps up some of what has taken place the last month.  Now it's on to making final lists and packing boxes as Kathy leaves for Mississippi next Thursday.  I look forward to seeing what all God brings my way for the summer!

Grace Turns Two!

Grace turned two on Sunday, May 31!   How fun it has been to watch her grow up and see her own personality develop.  She is definitely one of kind, as is every person that God creates!

We had fun decorating with bright, spring colors and prepared one of the kid's favorite dinners:  homemade pizza and fresh summer fruit.

Grace doesn't seem to get all that excited about dessert time as she is a healthy eater when it comes to the main meal (which I guess isn't all that much of problem... :) )  So when contemplating what to have for her birthday party, we decided to forgo the traditional cake route and serve ice cream sandwiches, an item that rarely makes it into the grocery cart for both families!

That turned out to be a really fun choice which everyone enjoyed - including the birthday girl.  And we still managed to do birthday candles:

Grace didn't seem to quite know what to do after we finished singing "Happy Birthday", so aunts and siblings had to offer some assistance in blowing out the candles. 

But once they were removed, she had no trouble figuring out what to do next! :)

While the three younger children had their baths, Dad, Essie, Benjamin, and Sarah enjoyed a rousing game of Aggravation.  At one point it got so loud that me and Hannah had to join as observers and watch the action.  Benjamin ended up winning the exciting game!

And then came present time.  It was all the adults could do to keep the eager siblings from opening all the presents for Grace, but they were certainly there when assistance was needed.  With a little time, though, she eventually mastered the art.

One of the gifts that Grace received was a small package of Post-It notes with pictures on them.  She particularly enjoys such things but rarely ever gets to use them because they are easily wasted.  But this package of sticky notes was all hers, and she could do whatever she wanted with them.  It was no surprise but still quite amusing when a few minutes after they were out of the package, she was already taking them a part and saying, "Owl!  Owl!  Owl!"  Of course, the same picture was on all of them, but she had to discover that herself - and each new sheet warranted an enthusiastic response.

What a fun evening together!  Children are truly a blessing from the Lord!

Chicago Trip

As I mentioned in my last post, Dad, Rachael, and I made a quick trip to Chicago one weekend in May since Dad was on the commission to install the new pastor of the Westminster RP church there.  The installation service was on a Sunday, but we decided to make a little vacation out of it together and go up a day early to enjoy some of the sites in the city.  The top place on our list:  The Chicago Botanic Gardens.  If you have never visited these gardens, then the next time you are in the Windy City, make a point to do so!

A week or so before our trip I continued to ask the Lord to give us favorable weather since most of my ideas involved being outdoors.  As we drove into the city that Saturday, it was pouring down rain, and I began to wonder if we would have to resort to Plan C or D.  Well, by the time we had eaten lunch and unloaded most of our belongings at our hotel, the skies cleared, and it proved to be a beautiful afternoon! What a special gift from the Lord.

It was so very relaxing to stroll through garden after garden and take in the pure loveliness of the environment all around us.  There was the vegetable garden, the English-walled garden, the rose garden, the water garden, the Japanese garden, etc - not to mention all the lakes and fountains and rolling hills.  And the spring flowers and trees were in full bloom - it was so very beautiful!!!

Given that I have a love for photography, this was certainly the place to be.

It proved to be the perfect place to also get some photos together:

Since Rachael's smart phone decided to continually lock up on her while we were away, she resorted to using my phone (I made the mistake of giving her my password...;) )   I did not realize she had made it her mission to keep Kathy and Mom abreast of our whereabouts and activities 24/7, but it turns out she was in possession of my phone more often than me those two days!  This was a common sight and continually brought a smile to my face: 

To add a little more humor, here is Dad checking the weather on his phone (since there was a chance of thunderstorms that afternoon):

But we could have given him the live report if he had just asked... :)

For dinner Saturday night we decided to dine at a restaurant we had never visited before:  The Cheesecake Factory.  And of course, we couldn't leave without savoring their signature dessert!

On Sunday morning, we worshiped with fellow believers at the Westminster RP Church.  The installation service was that afternoon at 3 pm.  Dad was privileged to give the charge to their new pastor, Rev. Steve Rhoda.

Upon the conclusion of the service, we immediately set out for the three hour drive home.  Being the loving father that he is, Dad obliged to fulfill his youngest daughter's request that we take the route through downtown Chicago rather than around the city.  This offered some spectacular views of the famous skyline (though my phone couldn't quite do it justice).

As the sun slipped behind the clouds that evening and we drove the familiar route back home, I thanked the Lord for answering my prayers and giving us a relaxing time away together.  Special memories and a special place.  I hope we can return soon!