Location: Our bedroom, Indianapolis, October 24th, 4:28pm.
I’m typing on borrowed time as a neighbor dropped in to visit with M. and E., and H. is napping in the children’s room.
Life is VERY good, and I wanted to tell you about it, so I will type until I get interrupted! Besides, you are probably growing restless with my blog-silence!
We dropped in to the zoo today; always a great treat for our children! They are so much fun, and we are trying to enjoy every moment with them! This fall has been beautiful, and on my days off (like today), we try to enjoy the autumn as a family!
Last Saturday, my wife gave me a special treat . . . she helped me get away for nearly 5 hours by myself! This was quiet devotional time, one-on-one with the Lord, for which I had been thirsting for quite some time! In fact, I do not think I had enjoyed any length of alone time (outside of working or sleeping) since H. was born more than two years ago! What a refreshing time I had with my Father in a local wooded park, equipped with my journal and a Bible!
Speaking of two years, our children are sleeping better finally; THANK YOU FOR YOUR PRAYERS! We feel like a new man and a new woman thanks to the little bit of rest we are starting to get! Hallelujah!
One of the burdens we are praying about is about eight marriages around us that are falling apart. By the grace of God, we rejoice that our marriage is beautiful and so much fun, but we are devastated by the situations that so many loved ones are facing! One the other hand, we are thrilled to help our church host a marriage event next month, and we already have a lot of interest for it! We see God at work in marriages and families all around the globe; after all, what better way to get to know the intricacies of God than to learn to love one another in family relationships?
We also had the privilage of visiting with some missionaries to Romania who are currently in the USA, and last night we heard via email from some long-lost friends I had met in France several years ago. Today I called another friend by accident; again a friend with whom I have not been in touch recently. Oh, and I had a bit of an abreviated conversation last weekend with a good friend from college with whom I had all but lost touch for probably a year or more.
Life has been busy as usual, though we are intentionally trying to rest more. We continue German folk-dancing once a week, but other than that, we do not have regular evening activities. I am also completing a three-month transition at my work from a position working with residents with advanced dementia, to a new position that will include more aspects of safety oversight in the organization. The transition has been grueling, but there is light at the end of the tunnel, and the new position will be a blessing in many respects.
We have been challenged greatly by the world events reported in the news, and our prayer life continues to grow. We are not only enjoying deeping prayer as a couple, but also in a morning prayer group, and we also have a lively small group that meets in our apartment. We strongly recommend all three types of fellowship with God and with other believers in your own life. You will not remain the same!
Meanwhile, privately, the Lord is working on several aspects of our own lives, and especially teaching us new things about such as generosity, rest, and the Spirit-led life. Sometimes we learn through groanings and trial, other times more pleasantly through the Bible or sermon, but we are certainly being prepared for whatever lies ahead. Today we failed in some of the paperwork we tried to complete, but we are still working toward a season of life back in Romania, waiting for that opportunity while redeeming our time here for the glory of the Lord.
We are thrilled that the Lord is working so powerfully in our family, in His Church, and in every part of the world. The problem is that we want to be involved in so much of it, and we have to quiet our hearts and listen carefully to His leading so that we will be right in the center of His will, ready for whatever He asks of us. We were challenged recently by our pastor who dared us to ask the questions: “Do the people around me feel loved by me?” and “Does God feel loved by me?” I am afraid that many of you would answer that question far differently than I would hope; thus we are prayerfully considering how our Christ’s love can be more genuine, more visible, and more fruitful in us. We want our friends and family and even enemies to feel valued by the love of Jesus at work in us. My wife does that so beautifully with her friends and with the neighbors especially! Not to mention her husband and children! She is an inspiration to me! But we both desire to more effectively love you and the other people the Lord has put in our lives! As a natural networker, it has been an embarrassing struggle for me to have dropped out of contact with so many people I care about and to watch my inbox gather emails by the hundreds and my blog lie dormant until it gathers dust! We look forward to constantly improving our investments in relationships!
In fact, my wife recently began getting together with another local gal from Romania, who even spent some time at my wife’s high school growing up (different years)! Small world, huh!
So God is good, blessing us, challenging us, and glorifying His Name, we pray!
Oops, I think I hear my interruption! We also have dinner guests arriving soon! Hopefully we can post more pictures before too long, but hope you enjoy a quick update! May God get the glory! He sure is good to us, and He has brought us through some challanging times!
We bless you in the Name of Jesus!
Knowing the Way 