Flood Update: Part 2

~Sunday (January 9)~

During the night Zack (one of our cats) goes crazy! He is running up and down the hall, jumping on my bed, scratching at my feet, and meowing very loudly. I’m guessing he doesn’t like the noise. Thankfully, he settles down. Unfortunately, he settles down right in the middle of my bed. And when Zack falls asleep, he doesn’t wake up until he’s ready. So I’m out of luck for a few hours.

I finally stumble out of bed after my less-than-perfect night of rest around 8:00 a.m. (I normally wake up a lot earlier than that, but under the circumstances, I slept in a bit.) I hop into a shower before breakfast.

Thankfully, we are able to escape all of the noise by going to church. Afterward, we came home for about two hours to eat lunch and relax, and then escaped for an hour by going next door to visit our neighbor’s new baby (Thank you so much for letting us visit!)

After that, we attended the church’s annual business meeting. Normally we wouldn’t all go, but we wanted to escape the noise (do you see a pattern here?). The meeting goes rather long, and we pick up Taco Bell on our way home for dinner.

~Monday (January 10)~

Daddy comes home from work just before noon to meet with the contractor (Mr. A). He starts off by taking measurements of the moisture levels. The worst part of the kitchen floor reads 19.8. Normal moisture readings should be around 11 for Michigan. So there is progress, but we find out that it can’t be salvaged. We also find out that the whole wall that got wet in the basement bedroom has to come down. L



The vacuum mat began sucking black stuff from under the flooring. I’m not sure what that was, but it wasn’t very pretty!



“If you can’t beat ‘em, join ‘em!” Mikey sleeping on top of one of the vacuum mats in the kitchen.



Mr. A looks under the kitchen cabinet to see if the wood in there can be salvaged. The reading is something like 23. It is beyond saturated. He says there is no way that can be saved. He rips it out to see if the wood flooring goes all the way back. Sure enough, it does. He says the cabinets may have to come out as well as the countertops in order to dry and refinish everything.



What the cabinet under our sink looks like without the bottom.

 

Thankfully, he told us we could turn off all the machinery on the upper level (except the dehumidifiers.) So we had a much quieter night! All in all, this day was rather disappointing as we found out the true extent of the damage. It is going to take it a LOT longer than we thought to fix everything.



The holes in our basement ceiling.



Someone saw this rainbow outside on Monday afternoon. How fitting! It’s comforting to know that God is with us through this event! J



. . . To be continued . . .

Flood Update: Part 1

Thank you all for being patient while I was “away” from the blog for a few days. Life has been rather chaotic since our unexpected flood Friday night. I think that the easiest way to describe our “adventure” is to give you a day-to-day synopsis/summary and insert pictures where appropriate. I will not be posting all of the updates at one time, as that would be a very long post! So, without further ado, here is what the past few days have looked like at our house . . .

~Friday (January 7)~

Mom and Dad turn the dishwasher on before going to bed. I (Bianca) look forward to sleeping in, as it has been a long week since starting school again after vacation. Sometime during the night, the hot water hose to our dishwasher springs a pin-head sized leak, and due to the pressure in the hose, spews water all night.

~Saturday (January 8)~

I wake up at 7:10 a.m. because my Mom opened the linen closet just outside my bedroom. I overhear her whisper to my Dad “there’s water everywhere in the kitchen.” I figure it had something to do with our malfunctioning spray hose in the kitchen sink. I roll over, pull the covers up and think about the next hour I have to enjoy resting. About a minute later, I hear Dad go running to the basement. I still don’t think much of it (probably because I am still half asleep.) After another minute, I hear the slippers. That would be Mom’s slippers. I finally realized that this wasn’t just a little puddle. She comes over and turns my lamp on and tells me I need to get up because there has been a flood and Dad needed all hands on deck.

I stumble downstairs to find the kitchen island moved and the cabinet doors under the sink open. Dad tells me to grab a pair of shoes and come downstairs with towels. I am shocked at what I find. Portions of our basement carpet are saturated with water. Eight of our drop-ceiling tiles were damaged and dripping water profusely. One had completely fallen to the floor, spreading sodden plaster everywhere, and three others were hanging, but acting as funnels so that the water dripped into buckets that had been set around.



The pipe that leaked is the one on the far left. The pipe in the center (which attaches to our sink sprayer) rubbed against it and over time, wore it out.



This is what was left of the plaster tiles that fell from the ceiling in the basement.



One of the eight holes in our ceiling.



In this picture, you can see one of the ceiling tiles just hanging to the left.

Our basement bedroom (located directly under our kitchen) was a mess. A chunk of the ceiling had fallen, and there was a gaping hole. Water had dripped into our cellular blinds, damaged the drywall, soaked part of our couch, and spread water all over our computer, desk, printer, and part of the carpet.



The ceiling in our basement bedroom directly under the kitchen. You can see that the drywall has completely fallen out to the right.



While Mom calls the insurance company, Ben, Dad and I get to work cleaning up what we can. I help pick up plaster tiles so that we can run the wet/dry vacuum. Around 8:00 a.m. the rest of the children come down to survey the damage. We have the plaster picked up and Dad starts running the wet vacuum. He estimates that at least 30-40 gallons of water leaked. Mom and Dad make talk with the insurance company and make arrangements for a restoration crew that afternoon. We do the best that we can to start our morning, despite the fact that we have no hot water (we had to shut the valve off in order to stop the leak.) After breakfast, Mom and the three younger children escape for awhile to swim lessons.

Around lunch time, Dad comes home after visiting the plumbing company/store and purchasing a new valve, so that our hot water can be restored. At 2:00 p.m. Mr. C from the restoration crew arrives. He surveys the damage and takes notes. About an hour later the contractor (Mr. A.) from the restoration crew arrives and the work begins.

At about 5:00 p.m. Mr. C leaves after unloading several pieces of equipment that we will need later. I come back inside to find things in even more upheaval! There is a pathway of cloth laid down to prevent the floor from getting dirty. I head to the basement to find everyone putting books in boxes, because the shelves will need to be moved. What a daunting task! We have a LOT of books! J After helping with that, I take food orders and Dad and I run to McDonalds since our kitchen has become the restoration crew’s headquarters.

By about 8:00 p.m. Mr. A. has moved the necessary furniture, ripped up the carpet, and put 4 blowers, 2 dehumidifiers, and 2 fans throughout the basement to dry the carpet and the foam/padding underneath. I practice my song for church on the piano (“I Could Sing of Your Love Forever”) and Mr. A asks if we are “believers.” We say yes and find out that he is a Christian and attends an EFCA Church in Grand Rapids! We talk a lot about theology, missions, and whatnot. I’m glad that amidst this hardship, God has blessed us with a Christian contractor!




This is what our basement bedroom looked like. You can see the two red blowers, the blue fan (foreground) and part of the dehumidifier (background.)



More fans, dehumidifiers, and a vacuum system in our kitchen.

By 9:00 p.m. Mr. A has set up a vacuum/mat system, 2 dehumidifiers, and 2 fans in the kitchen. They create quite a ruckus! (Think wind tunnel) In my bedroom, it still sounds like a hotel air conditioning unit gone haywire. Poor Josiah had a melt-down. It’s past his bedtime and he hasn’t even showered, and the noise is really bothering him. With tears in his eyes he asked Mom, “Do I have to listen to this for 3 days? Do I have a choice?” J Poor guy! At 10:00 p.m. Mr. A leaves and I settle in for a very interesting night’s sleep.

. . . To be continued . . .



"Well, that could be a problem."

Dear readers, you shall have to excuse us from the blog for a few days. We woke up on Saturday morning (January 8) to find that we had a house flood during the night. So right now our house is in upheaval trying to dry out the upstairs wood flooring, carpet, dry-wall, and ceiling tiles in the basement. We will “be back” in a few days hopefully with pictures and better news on the situation.

“We have a flood downstairs!”

“Well, that could be a problem.”

Where Do We Go From Here? Part 3

Posted by Betsy

One of the most startling “if/then” statements I’ve ever seen was not in the form of a geometry proof. Rather, I read it in Matthew 6:14-15. It says, “For if you forgive men when they sin against you, your heavenly Father will also forgive you.  But if you do not forgive men their sins, your Father will not forgive your sins.”

At first glance, this may appear as a harsh contradiction to the reality of a God who loves unconditionally.  But I don’t see it that way. My life experiences have affirmed why a loving God places such an emphasis on forgiveness. It is because when I forgive, my heart remains focused on pleasing God, and not myself. I do not become hardened, and ultimately reject God. In that sense, forgiving others wraps a cloak of protection around my heart.  It’s good medicine for me!

In this final post on Doug Phillips’ article, he affirms that forgiveness is key to our own well-being. When we don’t cultivate a spirit of forgiveness toward others, we become embittered, our prayers are hindered, and we lose the ability to move victoriously into the future.

III. Forgive Those Who Have Wronged You

Dearly beloved, avenge not yourselves, but rather give place unto wrath: for it is written, Vengeance is mine; I will repay, saith the Lord. Therefore if thine enemy hunger, feed him; if he thirst, give him drink: for in so doing thou shalt heap coals of fire on his head. Be not overcome of evil, but overcome evil with good.

(Romans 12:19-21)

In the course of a year, it is possible to build up many offenses and personal grievances at others. Left unaddressed, these grievances fester and grow. They turn the heart black and the body weak. They foster a spirit of vengeance and misguided self-righteousness. The short of it is this: Unforgiveness leads to bitterness. Bitterness curdles the mind and the spirit.

Fresh starts and new years should begin with forgiveness for others. Having a genuine spirit of forgiveness towards those who have wronged us is a mark of biblical Christianity. It is an evidence that we have been redeemed, and that we are praying lawfully: “Forgive us our debts, as we forgive our debtors” (Matthew 6:12).

Successful Christians are men and women who are free from bitterness. They have learned the principle modeled by our Lord Jesus Christ who, while suffering death at the hands of people he had never wronged, was able to say “Father, forgive them; for they know not what they do” (Luke 23:24).

I have a dear preacher friend with a sterling reputation who was once grievously slandered. When asked about the wicked actions of the slanderers, he replied something to this effect:

Oh you don’t understand — I am far, far worse than my detractors realize. They may have gotten a lot of the specific facts wrong, but I am just thankful they don’t know how bad my heart truly is. God have mercy on me a sinner.

This man had victory over bitterness.

My father is another man who always appeared to have victory over bitterness. In fact, from my earliest days to the present, I have watched lesser men “twist the truths [he’s] spoken to make a trap for fools.” ^[i]

Early in my life when I was still in government schools, I would listen to my own teachers criticize before my class the work my father was doing for the President to dismantle a government agency which was at war with the family. I read untruthful articles and saw derogatory comics on the pages of the Washington Post picturing him as a caveman for his “prehistoric” views. When my father was a leader in the Republican Party in Massachusetts, a gangster repeatedly threatened the life of his family. I remember being a boy and having my father shield me from homosexual picketers and protesters that would follow him and our family around at public locations.

Most painful and difficult for many to forgive is betrayal and dishonor. But that is a mistake. Betrayal and dishonor probably exist in the lives of most men. And why should any Christian be denied in their lives what past generations of Christians — and our Lord and Savior Himself — patiently endured? To our shame, most of us have been on both sides of that coin. From a son’s perspective, however, it is highly instructive to watch a father act honorably in the midst of such conflict. It has been a great blessing in my own life to observe my father nobly respond even in the face of barbs from former allies and friends, once loved and nurtured by him.

Eternally optimistic, Dad would always say: “Never be bitter. Life is too short. Thank God for your blessings. Press on!”

Bitterness comes from being unwilling to forgive. Bitter people are small people. They are unsuccessful people. They are people who cannot move forward. They are people who believe that the personal wrongs against them are so great that they — the offended — are entitled to do to their offenders what they pray the Lord Jesus Christ will never do to them: refuse to forgive.

Here is my recommendation: Think through every grief, minor and major, caused by others to you in the year 2010. Now add to the list any other personal offenses that continue to linger from past years. Write these down as bullets on a sheet of paper.

The first thing you will likely realize is just how many offenses are polluting your thought life and, probably, your spirit. This is a sign of latent bitterness. Bitterness will kill you. It renders you completely ineffective.

Now prayerfully walk through the list — bullet, by bullet. With each offense, remind yourself that the most despicable action taken against you by another utterly (and infinitely) pales in comparison to the least of your offenses against the Lord Jesus Christ.

And yet He has forgiven you.

Before 2011 begins, adopt a spirit of forgiveness towards your insensitive friends as well as your hateful enemies. Forgive your imperfect father for whatever it is you need to forgive him for (and pray to the Lord that your own children someday forgive you for your failures). Quit devoting untold precious hours to commiseration, mental replay of the wrongs done, and thoughts about just how badly you were wronged. Stop blaming everybody but you for your problems. Look to yourself. Once you start chronicling your own sinful attitudes and crimes against God and man, you simply won’t have time to worry about the wrongs done to you. You will stop being bitter, and you will start being thankful.

Wipe the slate clean. “Press on.” Forgive.

Conclusion

As 2010 comes to a close, take time to remember and to say “thank you.” Take time to examine yourself for bitterness. Forgive others. Finally, as you love God with all your heart, soul and might, trust Him, too. Really trust him. Trust God with all your heart, your soul and might. You and I can not solve every problem. What we can do is be kind, forgiving, and patient before the Lord. We can not “fix” everything that is broken. Only God can do that. In His time and His way, the Lord can not only bring peace, but He can give you the very desires of your heart as you seek Him with integrity. He can redeem the years the locusts have eaten, and He delights in blessing his faithful children. “The blessing of the LORD, it maketh rich, and he addeth no sorrow with it” (Proverbs 10:22).

It is appropriate that we stop and thank God at the birth of a new year. Remember that God gave man the stars on Day Four in part so that he could order and structure his life based on a clock/calendar system of days, seasons, and years (Genesis 1). He tells us to “remember” acts and to “number” our days. In Scripture, the formal act of remembering providences of God in our life is linked to hope, honor, and generational success (e.g., Psalms 44, 78, etc.). By February 2011, the year 2010 will be a distant memory. Strike now while the iron is hot. The opportunity to remember and to say “thank you” may never come again. And can you afford even one more day in which your prayers are hindered — because you were refusing to forgive? Trust the Lord. He is in charge: “Trust in the LORD with all your heart, And lean not on your own understanding; In all your ways acknowledge Him, And He shall direct your paths” (Proverbs 3:5).

[i] From Rudyard Kipling’s “If”

Where Do We Go From Here? Part 2

Posted by Betsy

Yesterday, I posted Part 1 of an article by Doug Phillips, of Vision Forum Ministries, in which he outlines three ways to begin 2011 with vision and purpose. First, he encourages us to outline and record the many providences of God in the past year.

In Part 2, he challenges us to express thanks to those who have invested in our lives.  If we don’t take time to say thank you, we may cultivate a spirit of ingratitude in our hearts.

This one can be a real challenge in today’s rushed, over-scheduled culture.  We may feel thankful in our hearts…but do we take the time to express it?  We live in a day and age where communication opportunities proliferate…most of us can be reached via snail mail, email, instant messaging, skype, twitter, cell phones, texting…the list goes on and on…and yet, we’re often too busy to stop what we’re doing and spend five minutes composing an expression of thanks.

Interestingly, this was a problem in Jesus’ day as well. He once healed ten lepers, as he traveled the border between Samaria and Galilee, on His way to Jerusalem.  Ten lepers were healed…but only one came back from rejoicing to say thanks. Based on His reaction (recorded in Luke 17:17-18) Jesus found this lack of grateful expression disappointing.

As you read Part 2 below, ask yourselves, “Who can I thank today, for taking time to invest into my life?”

II. Say ‘Thank You’ to
Those Who Have Invested in Your Life

[I] cease not to give thanks for you, making mention of you in my prayers. (Eph. 1:16)

Whatever happened to the man who first opened to you the words of life from the Scripture? Where is the comrade, coach, or instructor who believed in you and helped you to accomplish a great goal? What about the Bible teacher whose careful handling of the Word opened up new vistas of understanding? Where is the friend who stood with you through thick and thin? Most importantly, what have you communicated to the mother who carried you in her womb, loved and nurtured you, or the father who labored to provide for and shepherd you?

When was the last time you responded to their investment in your life with gratitude, blessings, and even money? Jesus reminds us of those ungrateful recipients of blessing who simply went their way without demonstrating gratitude (Luke 17).

Before the year ends, make a list of two types of people: The first list are the names of people whose life, ministry, or personal investment in you have deeply touched you and changed your life. (In my case, the list includes parents, pastors, and even some teachers from the early years of my Christian walk that I did not meet until much later in my life, but whose books and tapes were crucial to my personal discipleship as a young Christian.) The second list should include those people who played the most significant role in your life in 2010.

Write a brief, meaningful letter to each of them. Be specific in your gratitude. Explain what they did for you and why it was important to you. Show them how they were God’s instrument of blessing in your own life. Pray over each letter, asking God to grant you rich insights on the character qualities of each individual and on the way those qualities changed your own life. Where appropriate, include a check or special token of appreciation that reflects your desire to show them, tangibly, that you recognize that you are in their debt. You cannot imagine the joy this will give to someone from your past who may think you have forgotten them. Give generously and without concern for getting a tax deduction. I strongly recommend sending money to your parents. Keep in mind that you will never be able to return their personal and financial investment in your life, except through your testimony of faithfulness, covenant keeping, and honor to the Lord.

Also, your children need to know the people who have blessed their parents. They need to see that Mom and Dad are grateful and generous. Share your letters with them. In our household, we ask our children to write to some of the people who have blessed Mommy and Daddy, because our children are the indirect recipients of these blessings on their parents.

This will take a day or two to complete. You may have twenty letters to write, but you will never regret saying “thank you.”

One last thought: One reason why Christians are often limited in vision, energy, and blessings is that, contrary to the Lord’s command, we are ungrateful, unforgiving, and bitter. Far too many who profess the name of Christ spend more time obsessing on those who have wronged them than rejoicing in those who have blessed them. Letters and tangible expressions of gratitude are not only pleasing to Christ, but an antidote to heart-sickness.

…to be continued…

Where Do We Go From Here? Part 1

Posted by Betsy

I absolutely adore the Christmas season.  For us, it begins in November, when we shop for, pack, pray over, and ship our Operation Christmas Child shoeboxes. It lingers on past New Year’s Day, with lights blinking softly on the Christmas tree, and haunting Christmas melodies playing in the background while we homeschool.

It is a season brimful with wonderful family traditions, many of which Bianca has already shared with you. Yet when we’re in the midst of it, we’re sometimes hard-pressed to pause and reflect on where we’ve been this past year, where we are, and where we’re going.

I recently read an email from Doug Phillips, President and Founder of Vision Forum Ministries, which addresses this very issue. He challenges us to do three things at the end of each year, which will set a purposeful, meaningful course for the new year. These involve reflecting on God’s providences; saying thank you to those who have impacted us; and forgiving those who’ve wronged us.

Believing that it’s never too late to implement a good thing, I would love to share his thoughts with you. Even though 2010 is behind us, we can still look back—with a little more time nowJ—and glean lessons that will carry over.

Doug’s article is long, so I will post it in three parts. Part 1 encourages us to chronicle the providences of God, so that we don’t forget them.

I. Outline and Chronicle the Many Providences of God

Write the vision, and make it plain upon tables, that he may run that readeth it.

(Hab. 33:2)

First, using simple bullet points, outline the key events for every week of every month of the year. Take the time to do the research which will help jog your memory and allow you to make an accurate record. I find that reviewing bills, blogs, journals, newspaper headlines, letters, and even organizing my photographs chronologically are enormously helpful tools. Those individuals who were faithful to journal or keep a diary will have little problem reconstructing key events. Give yourself a good week to reconstruct your own outline of the year. Also, by making this a family project, you will not only build your list with greater speed and precision, but (in the hands of a loving patriarch) the very act of chronicling the providences of God in your life is a blessed tool for family discipleship.

Every family will have a different set of priorities directing what they should record. In addition to recording the key events and providences of the year chronologically, I try to take the time with my family to record some of the following information on separate bullet lists:

Where did I/we travel?

What were the most important sermons I heard this year?

What books/articles did I write?

What significant household projects did we accomplish in 2010?

What were the most important meetings of the year?

What special friendships were made this year?

Which children lost teeth, and how many?

Who grew in physical stature, and how much did they grow?

Who learned to read this year?

What diet and physical exercise regimen did I maintain to honor “my temple”?

What books did I read? Did we read as a family? Did my children read?

What Scriptures did my family memorize?

What loved ones died this year?

What were the great personal/ministry/national tragedies and losses of the year?

What were the great personal/ministry/national blessings of the year?

What were my most significant failures/sins for the year 2010?

What commitments have I made to overcome sin in 2011?

What significant spiritual and practical victories did I experience?

In what tangible ways did I communicate gratitude to those who have blessed me and invested in my life?

What are the top ten themes of 2010 for my family?

…to be continued…

Black and White Vs. Color



For Amy.



For Betsy.



A Look Back at Christmas 2010, Part 4

Christmas in Pennsylvania

On December 27, we left Ohio and headed to Pennsylvania to visit with my Dad’s side of the family. We had an extra-special treat as my cousins and aunt from Florida flew up for the week! Unfortunately, we missed my uncle who had to remain in Florida due to illness. We still enjoyed our time together with them as well as time with my grandparents.



Everyone waiting to open presents. Left to Right: Grandma, Daddy, Roma, Aunt Debbie, and Cousins Morgan and Lindsey.



Everyone enjoying Christmas at Grandma's.



A typical “Southern Style” Christmas feast: ham, veggie casserole, potato salad, sweet yams, “green stuff” (jello salad with pineapple and nuts), buttered rolls, and a tall glass of chocolate milk (ok, so the milk isn’t southern. That’s just what we do at Grandma’s!)



And of course, no southern feast is complete without pecan pie and a piece of Grandpa’s fudge!



So, that was our Christmas in four nutshells! :-) We hope you all had a Merry Christmas and a Blessed New Year!