Haitian Bibles and Hurricane Sandy

Roma has always had a burden to see people have access to the word of God. When we returned home from Haiti we did some inquiring and searching for Haitian Bibles. Last week a package arrived with 100 French New Testaments that were given to us free of charge! We were SO excited! They are on their way to the missionary couple in Florida, and they will disperse them in Haiti on their next trip. Beni swa Letènel!

 

As a complete side note, our family received some effects from Hurricane Sandy on Monday. What we received was mild compared to what many others are experiencing on the East coast, but we’ve still had some unusual weather. We had very strong winds all day on Monday with the gusts increasing into the evening. We took down our flag pole around 9:00 p.m. because we were afraid it was going to snap again (it happened earlier this year.) Part of a gutter was also blowing in the neighbor’s yard.

 

This morning we woke up to snow falling! Pretty crazy for this time of year in Michigan.

As you can see, our porch decorations and furniture didn’t do so well against the winds.

More snow/sleet on the deck.

Sorry this picture is blurry from the rain on the window, but you can see the accumulation of snow in the yard.

Thankfully we have not lost power nor had any other serious consequences of the storm. We would have been extra disappointed to have the power go out since our fridge just got fixed yesterday and had finally gotten down to the correct temperature!

 

We were a bit concerned because this morning, our gas fireplace upstairs wasn’t working. If the power went out, that would be our only source of heat. It appeared that the pilot light had been blown out by all the wind during the night. We were finally able to ignite the pilot light after a conversation with Dad on the phone and by consulting the little instruction sheet attached to the controls. It always makes us ladies feel good when we figure out how to fix things like that. J

 

*Have you experienced any effects from Hurricane Sandy? Have you seen any snow where you live?*

 

How to Say Goodbye

Tell me when the time we had slipped away

Tomorrow turned to yesterday

And I don't know how

 

Tell me what can stop this river of tears

It's been building up for years

For this moment now . . .

 

Tell me where the road ahead is gonna bend

And how to harness up the wind

And how to say goodbye

 

Tell me why

Why does following your dreams

Take you far away from me

And I knew that it would

 

Tell me how to fill the space you left behind

And how to laugh instead of cry

And how to say goodbye . . .

 

Tell me where the road ahead is gonna bend

And how to harness up the wind

And how to say goodbye.

 

--Portions of “How to Say Goodbye” by Michael W. Smith.

 

 

There are only a few good reasons for leaving a church. One good reason is going into ministry. Our dear friend and Haiti missions team leader, Mr. P has been feeling the call to go into full-time ministry for quite awhile. The missions trip to Haiti really intensified his calling to children’s ministries. This past Sunday was his last at our church, because in a few months he is going to become the children’s ministries director at another local church.

 

Although it breaks our heart to see him and his family move on, we are SO excited about the new opportunities God has given him! It is amazing to see the ways that God has worked in their lives over the past few years we’ve been together at church. Over the past few months, God has really knit the hearts of our families together. Although we don’t understand why God has brought us so close together when we are both moving in different directions, we trust it is for a reason. I am so grateful for my family in Christ! God has big plans for their family and we look forward to seeing how those unfold over the next few months and years!

 

Trick or Treat Trail

For the past several months, our church has been preparing for an outreach event in our community. In recent years, the Parks and Rec has hosted a free trick or treat trail/event with local businesses and churches as the sponsors. This year our church got involved, and our family was able to help out this past weekend.

 

Does this guy look ready for Texas or what? J

A friend of ours from church dressed up as a chubby old lady. J She was probably one of the warmest people there with all of those layers.

Part of the group from our church that came to help at the event.

This is a bit of a side note, but we are so thankful for our dear church family! We’ve been at the church for several years now, but the Lord has really made everyone truly feel like our family over the past few months. We have become especially close to them over the past few weeks as they have encouraged and prayed for our move. I’m really going to miss everyone!

 

I think there were 2-3,000 people that came to the event. Everyone lined up and walked down the trail where we handed out candy, tracts, and cards with information about our church. There was also free pizza, cider, donuts, cookies and popcorn, as well as bounce houses, a petting zoo, and a hay ride to a pumpkin patch.

We were constantly busy filling more bags and handing out candy to the steady stream of people. It was so fun to see the kids’ faces light up when we gave them a whole bag of candy (most booths were only handing out one or two pieces.)

Josiah and his friend N waiting for their turn on the hayride.

The weather turned out perfect for the event. It was cool and crisp like fall is supposed to be, but there was no rain and the wind was minimal.

It is possible to take artsy pictures on a moving hay wagon. Just so you know. J

The hayride took the kids out to a pumpkin patch where they got to pick and keep their own pumpkin.

Josiah with another friend from church, S. I was really impressed with all the kids from church that came. Despite the cold temperatures, they had very good attitudes and I think they really enjoyed themselves.

Josiah by the lake where the event was hosted.

This event was lots of fun and I’m glad we had the opportunity to help out!

 

Fan vs. Follower

“Fans are happy to follow Jesus as long as that doesn’t require any significant changes or have negative implications . . . There is no way to follow Jesus without him interfering with your life. Following Jesus will cost you something. Following Jesus always costs something.” –Kyle Idleman in “Not a Fan.”

 

Recipe--Apple Gingerbread

Last weekend we tried a new recipe that we really liked. I’ve actually had a hard time coming up with recipes for the blog lately, because we really haven’t done a whole lot of cooking (because of how often we’ve been showing our house.) But a friend posted this recipe, and I knew we had to try it.

 

This is the perfect fall recipe for cool evenings. There’s something so comforting about gingerbread! The only thing I personally would change (some of my family members were completely happy with it the way it was) is cutting the apples into bite-sized pieces and mixing it in with the batter, rather than layering large pieces on the bottom. But either way, this dessert is simple, quick, and a winner!

 

Apple Gingerbread

 

1/2 Cup brown sugar

1/2 Cup butter

1 tsp. ginger

1 tsp. cinnamon

1/2 tsp. salt

1 large egg

1 Cup molasses (I only used about half this much, since it was all we had. It still turned out good!)

1 Cup sour milk (1 cup milk with 1 Tbsp of white vinegar added to it. It will bubble and curdle, but that is what is supposed to happen. Allow to sit for a few minutes.)

2 Cups flour

1 tsp. baking soda

2 of your favorite baking apples, peeled and cut into 8-10 slices (I used two Gala apples and an apple slicer)

Whipped Cream

 

Mix the sugar, butter, ginger, cinnamon and salt until creamy. Add 1 large egg and beat until fluffy. Add molasses and sour milk. Mix well. Add flour and baking soda and mix until combined. Grease a 9 x 9 pan. Layer the pan with the apples. Pour the cake batter over the apples. Bake at 325 degrees for 50-60 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean. Cool slightly; serve with a dollop of whipped cream. Makes 9 servings.

 

Fall Photos

If you’ve been reading our blog for very long, I’m sure you have figured out that fall is one of our favorite times of year. We love everything about it!

 

All of us kids at some point have made sun catchers like these with leaves, crayon shavings, and wax paper.

Posing for picture among the leaves, pumpkins, and Mums in our yard.

Leaf piles were always a bit hit with us kids. J How could anyone not love jumping into a huge pile of crackly, crunchy leaves?

Visiting orchards is also a favorite fall activity.

*What is your favorite way to celebrate fall? Please share in the comments!*

 

And the Adventure Continues . . .

Tuesday night we opened our freezer to get some ice cream to go with our dessert (a chocolate chip skillet cookie.) The ice cream was the consistency of yogurt, very soft and mushy. I checked the temperature of the freezer and fridge. The freezer was at 20°F (it’s supposed to be at 0°F) and the fridge was at 45°F (it’s supposed to be at 37°F.) We thought perhaps the door had been left open before we left for worship dance class. Dad instructed us not to open the doors and see if it cooled down.

 

By midnight the freezer temperature was in the 30’s and the fridge was up to 50°F. Clearly there was something wrong. Mom and Dad got up around 1:00 a.m. and took all of our freezer food to our other freezer in the basement. Unfortunately nothing could be done with the fridge food.

 

In the morning we discovered a puddle under it, because all the ice in the freezer was melting. Since all the food in the fridge had been sitting at warm temperatures for so long, we didn’t think it was safe to eat anymore. So we went out for breakfast at Bob Evans.

 

Rubia, Roma, and Mom at Bob Evans.

Me, Ben, and Josiah.

A repairman came to take a look at the fridge. The condenser fan motor is not working properly and has to be replaced. Unfortunately, he didn’t have the necessary part and had to order it. Hopefully it will come in Thursday or Friday morning and he can come back on Friday afternoon to fix it. Meanwhile, I’m not exactly sure what we’ll be eating for the next few days, but I’m sure we’ll figure something out!

 

Disturb Us

Disturb us, Lord, when

We are too pleased with ourselves,

When our dreams have come true

Because we dreamed too little,

When we arrived safely

Because we sailed too close to the shore.

 

Disturb us, Lord, when

with the abundance of things we possess

We have lost our thirst

For the waters of life;

Having fallen in love with life,

We have ceased to dream of eternity

And in our efforts to build a new earth,

We have allowed our vision

Of the new Heaven to dim.

 

Disturb us, Lord, to dare more boldly,

To venture on wilder seas

Where storms will show Your mastery;

Where losing sight of land,

We shall find the stars.

 

We ask you to push back

The horizons of our hopes;

And to push back the future

In strength, courage, hope, and love.

 

This we ask in the name of our Captain,

Who is Jesus Christ.

 

--Sir Francis Drake

 

This prayer has become very special to us recently because of all the changes going on in our family, in our church, and in the lives of our dear friends. May this be our prayer: that God would disturb us to dare more boldly and live with abandon for Him!

 

"Excuse Me?"

“And what are you doing in the pantry, young man?”

One morning last week, we were eating breakfast in the kitchen and noticed the cat eyeing the pantry. We could tell that he was going to make a jump for it. J Sure enough, the next instant he was inside the pantry, scoping things out. Our pets seem to give the impression that we starve them, even though their food bowls are never empty. Zack has a taste for people food, particularly marshmallows and raw pasta. I’m not exactly sure what he was scoping out in the above picture. I do know that he was shooed out of there and the door promptly closed after that!

 

Goodnight Garden

This weekend despite the cold overcast weather, I put on my boots and put the garden to sleep. I feel bad about how much I neglected it this year. Once we got back from Haiti, my mind was focused on other things. But next year is another year, and gardening isn’t the most important thing in life.

 

There was quite a bit of clean-up to do. I started off by cutting all the dead heads off my zinnias and marigolds (I’m keeping those to take with me to Texas.) Then I pulled up everything still standing and threw it away. I hauled around all my pots of herbs to dump them, wash them, and put them up in our shed. I had rather sore bicep muscles Sunday. J Some of those pots are HEAVY! (Mental note to self: next time you invest in pots, make sure they’re lightweight plastic, not 10-pound-terra-cotta-monsters.)

 

Once I had all of that taken care of, I raked over the garden to satisfy my aesthetic side. All of that took maybe 2 or 3 hours. It felt good to say goodbye for the year. But I also remembered that this is the last time I’ll work in my little Michigan garden. Hopefully I’ll have a bigger garden next year in Texas since I will have a lot more land to work with--and a longer growing season!

 

Fans

Photo Credit: Roma.

“. . . I think Jesus has a lot of fans these days. Fans who cheer for Him when things are going well, but who walk away when it’s a difficult season. Fans who sit safely in the stands cheering, but they know nothing of the sacrifice and pain of the field. Fans of Jesus who know all about Him, but they don’t know Him.

 

“But Jesus was never interested in having fans. . . . My concern is that many of our churches in America have gone from being sanctuaries to becoming stadiums. And every week all the fans come to the stadium where they cheer for Jesus but have no interest in truly following Him. The biggest threat to the church today is fans who call themselves Christians but aren’t actually interested in following Christ. They want to be close enough to Jesus to get all the benefits, but not so close that it requires anything from them.”

 

–Kyle Idleman in “Not a Fan.”

 

Recipe--Homemade Hot Cocoa

This time of year, a favorite treat at our house is hot cocoa. Once upon a time, we would stock up on boxes filled with little envelopes of cocoa mix. But then we realized how easy it was to make our own, and we haven’t gone back!

 

I will have to warn you that this hot cocoa recipe is not as sweet as what you will find in an envelope. In fact, it took a little bit of getting used to on our part. But in the end, it’s cheaper than the store-bought stuff, and probably healthier since you can regulate the amount of sugar in it. I actually like the fact that I don’t feel like I’m drinking dessert in a cup every time I have a cup of cocoa!

 

One of my favorite afternoon snacks is a slice of cheddar cheese dipped in a cup of hot cocoa, and a serving of popcorn on the side. Alright, maybe you’ll just think I’m weird and I should stop because I really do want you to try this cocoa! J It really is good! The rest of the family always calls on me to make their hot cocoa for them. I’m sort of the in-house barista in our family!

 

One last confession: all the measurements are approximate. I actually don’t measure when I make it, which is why I’ve included photos for you to see the amounts I’m using.

 

Homemade Hot Cocoa

 

1 Tablespoon unsweetened cocoa powder

1 Tablespoon sugar

3 Tablespoons cream

1 cup milk



Measure the unsweetened cocoa into the bottom of your mug.

Measure in the sugar. (I personally prefer to use honey in my hot cocoa. It gives it a slightly different flavor, but I like it!)

Swirl the two together.

Add in the cream. (We use heavy whipping cream, but you can use half-and-half, or just regular milk. But the cream gives it a little extra richness!)

Mix it all together well. (If you’re using honey, it will be more of a dark paste.)

Add in the milk and give it all a good stir.

Microwave on high for 1 minute.

Give it a good stir, and then microwave it for 30 more seconds.

Stir again, while ignoring the unsightly cocoa spill on the counter (that’s where I laid the spoon in between stirs.) Microwave 30 seconds more.

And there you have it! Delicious, homemade hot cocoa complete with foam on the top just like the big coffee houses. Enjoy!