Sisters together again! Here are the girls at the airport, moments after Jillian and Tony arrived in Danang.
Hello, all--
A thought to begin:"It is blessed to know that the grace of God is free to us at all times, without preparation, without fitness, without money, without price!" (Charles Spurgeon).
One morning a few days ago, Jillian asked me, "What are we going to do today, other than school?" Without an instant's thought, I replied, "Honey, that's all I have energy for right now." The limitation and paucity of those words hit me. I knew instantly, by my own judgment upon myself, that I was living below the energy that God has for me. Now, don't get me wrong. I am not criticizing myself, or putting myself down for pouring energy into the education of our five intelligent daughters. I just sensed that I was giving too much out inbetween "fill-ups"--and you KNOW what happens if you do that in your car. Ha! So, I have been getting back to more time with Jesus. Time to stop and let Him speak to me, time to rest in His presence. With Tony home, that is a bit easier. He takes the girls for awhile in the afternoons, as well as doing the "wake up, get ready for breakfast" duty in the mornings to give me some time alone.
I wanted to catch you up on a few highlights of Tony and Jillian's trip to the US, and what has been happening since...First, about our house in Kentucky...in addition to leaving with the furniture, our renters left the house a wreck. Apparently, they had 2 or 3 large dogs in the house. All the flooring had to be replaced, walls needed painting, the refrigerator was a loss, trash was left in the pond, as well as all over the property, etc. But, we found....it was the Body of Christ to the rescue!! An Alabama fellowship sent a team of workmen for a couple of days, two other churches were represented by one or more workers, our neighbors were indispensable, a dear sister sent a sizeable gift to help with expenses, another saint provided repairs through their business at no cost, and Marissa and Enoch laid down their lives (again) by working, working, working alongside Tony. We are overwhelmed by the goodness of God that flows through the selfless compassion of His people. There is NO way Tony could have made these repairs on his own. And if you are reading this, and I have overlooked your contribution in this list, I apologize and say that YOU are not overlooked. We are so thankful!
Second, the trip itself was good for Tony and Jillian. Jillian enjoyed time with Grandmom and special friends that welcomed her into many homeschool activities, including dance, gymnastics and field trips. She was able to visit a few others, but pretty much stayed close to home base in Versailles. Tony was blessed to see so many of our brothers and sisters who have joined with Orphan Voice. He visited churches in Kentucky, Virginia, and Arkansas (plus a State or two I may have missed!). On the return trip, Jillian was invited to visit the cockpit of the aircraft, and met the pilot. She was impressed by all the controls and equipment. She was equally happy to meet one of the models from the "Deal or No Deal" television show. Next time you notice the holder of Suitcase #16, that's the young lady that Jillian met and spoke with for a few minutes.Tony and Jillian had a couple days in Beijing, helping our friend Peter with some paperwork for his son, Christian. Then, it was back to Danang where a very happy Mommy and sisters were reunited with our travelers!We are praying earnestly to follow the path God has for us. Many opportunities are before us. Please pray that our way will be made clear.
A couple quotes from our girls that have kept Tony and I smiling:
1. Tony took Jillian, Anna Mei and Elizabeth bowling. The pin setter occasionally knocked over the pins as it raised, usually on Elizabeth's turn. She benefitted from the extra pins already being down. One time, two pins had already fallen, and then Elizabeth knocked over another 6--the other girls said, "Elizabeth--how did you DO that?" Elizabeth smiled sweetly and said, "Watch and learn girls, watch and learn."
2. We were talking about the coming onslaught of December birthdays (Jillian on the 9th, Faith and Joy on the 16th, Elizabeth on the 18th and me on the 21st). A comment was made that Jillian was soon going to be 10. She nodded gave a double-thumbs up and said knowingly, "Double digits, baby, double digits!"I have other things to share, but they will have to wait. May His joy be your strength today and may you depend, rely and draw upon it!
Grace and peace!
