cherries, blueberries, and fireworks of faith

Blueberries. What a great way to start my day yesterday - blueberry syrup for French toast, hot blueberry tea, and a big bowl of fresh, organic blueberries with yogurt.

And the day ended with ice cream sundaes... with fudge, blue sprinkles and four cherries... my little mini-celebration of Independence day - ah, the sweetness of freedom.   

In between the blueberries and cherries was some pretty incredible talks, particularly with my Hobbit Hole roommates. There's a theme, we noticed, in a life of faith in Jesus: that just when we start to feel comfortable and secure, something gets shaken up to challenge us and deepen our faith. "It's like in Mario World," Brie and Emilee explained. "When you complete one level, you 'level up' to something more difficult, so your skills have to improve to move you forward to the goal." Similar concept goes for body builders who take on increasingly greater weights, or runners who push themselves further, or musicians who explore more and more difficult pieces of music... to grow in understanding, strength, endurance, and skill, the stakes have to be raised more and more. 

And so it is in faith... We experience something, wrestle with it, choose to trust God, surrender it to him, find him faithful in that experience, and rest in the knowledge that he is good and he is in control. Level up!! Another experience, harder to tackle than the last one... but we wrestle with it, choose again to trust God, surrender it to him, find him faithful yet again, and rest once more... Level up!! We encouraged each other, because when a challenge arises, we can remember that it is because we passed the last test and this is just another opportunity to depend on God more, trust him more, and discover a deeper level of his grace and love. 

So, as much as we would all love for things to stay as they are right now - in this level of life that we have figured out and are thriving in - we want to know God more, and be more powerful in him. The challenges will be bigger, the changes and obstacles will be scarier, but the rewards are greater. So, we're grabbing our "mushrooms" "feathers" and "fire flowers," taking a deep breath and charging ahead with faith as crazy and beautiful as fireworks... Level up!

Chaotic cooking

"There is nothing to eeeeeat!" Brie wailed dramatically the other night as we both leaned in to the refrigerator. I saw lettuce, cheese, eggs, and an assortment of salad dressings. Then she opened the freezer and it was packed full of kosher meats and ice cream.

Braving the wrath of my exceptionally-emotional Brie, I said, "Well, it looks like there is a lot to eat-"

"Noooo there's noooot!" she cried and slammed the door. She spun around a couple times and sighed deeply, and I decided it was best to be quiet and still. Clearly her soul was in tumult, but I also know that cooking is very good therapy for her.

She gathered some of her wits and said, "I do have an eggplant roasting in the oven."

? ? ? Really? Who does that?

"Ok, well that's... something," I tried to be positive. "What do you put with eggpl-"

"I don't knoooooow!"

"...How about you just make me an egg?"

"NO! You can eat eggs and eggplant together because that's like planting an egg and that would just be wrong!"

I'm not following her logic... Ok, ok, quiet and calm. I noticed a cutting board on the counter. "Did you chop up a sweet potato?"

"Yes, it's also roasting."

"Well then! Eggplant and sweet potatoes are roasting! Sounds like a good start." I do not feel like I am being helpful at all, but trying to stay encouraging.

We started to talk about our day, and as Brie processed her crazy life and got things off her chest, she began to flit around the kitchen in magical fairy fashion, chopping vegetables, boiling couscous, and adding this and that to the concoction. I love watching Brie in this mode. Pretty soon, what started as "nothing to eat" became a brilliant gourmet meal, artistically combined colors and flavors. It was like Brie was able to take all the chaos in her heart and translate it into something beautiful and delicious to bless others and bring healing to herself.

And I think that is something that Jesus loves to do too... When we are too crazy to be able to look at our lives and see anything of worth or value, he takes the chaos and creates something beautiful out of it that can make a difference in the world and bring us closer to Him.

Where did you come from?

This week my ESOL class from the college came over to my house for dinner. There are 16 people in my class, from 9 different countries! They brought food, so we got to enjoy things like Peruvian potato-cheese sauce, Tai noodles, and Haitian baked chicken. Mmmmm...! I was so proud of the way they all engaged each other in English language conversations. There was a lot of joking and laughing, too, which made me believe they were comfortable and happy and felt welcomed and loved in our little Hobbit Hole. 

As we sat around the dining room, our conversation turned to the topic of immigration - where did you come from? What was the process that you had to go through to get here? There was a variety of answers, all very interesting, and it was fun to learn more about their families and histories, and share ours with them. And as we recalled the steps that have led us here, I thought about how important it is for followers of Jesus to take time to remember spiritually where we have come from, and how we've been brought into life and freedom and redemption... 

"Remember that you were slaves in Egypt and the Lord your God redeemed you..." - Deuteronomy 15:15

"As for you, you were dead in your transgressions and sins, in which you used to live when you followed the ways of this world and of the ruler of the kingdom of the air... All of us also lived among them at one time, gratifying the cravings of our flesh and following its desires and thoughts. Like the rest, we were by nature deserving of wrath. But because of his great love for us, God, who is rich in mercy, made us alive with Christ even when we were dead in transgressions—it is by grace you have been saved." - Ephesians 2:1-4

"Brothers and sisters, think of what you were when you were called. Not many of you were wise by human standards; not many were influential; not many were of noble birth. But God chose the foolish things of the world to shame the wise; God chose the weak things of the world to shame the strong." - 1 Corinthians 1:26-27

"When you were slaves to sin, you were free from the control of righteousness. What benefit did you reap at that time from the things you are now ashamed of? Those things result in death! But now that you have been set free from sin and have become slaves of God, the benefit you reap leads to holiness, and the result is eternal life. For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord." -Romans 6:20-23

The tradition of giving thanks...

Thanksgiving has always been one of my favorite holidays. It's also been one of the most traditional. Here's my classic Thanksgiving Day tradition: 1) Being home with my family, 2) watching the Macy's parade, 3) watching the dog show, 4) having a fire in the fireplace even if it is 60 degrees outside, 5) watching my mom flit around the kitchen in her apron all day, cooking and smiling, 6) getting dressed up even if we go nowhere, 7) having turkey and pumpkin pie, 8) working on a puzzle/project with dad, 9) playing music with Kevan and digging out our favorite Christmas albums, 10) watching It's a Wonderful Life.

None of those things happened this year - absolutely none of it. I woke up this morning and felt a little bit sad that things were so extremely different, with no semblance of anything familiar. But at the same time, I wouldn't have traded the gifts of yesterday's celebration for anything.

My friend Anna is here visiting me from NC, and that is a huge gift. I got to be with Hannah too, and she has been one of the greatest gifts in my life in the past year - my Samwise Gamgee. And I couldn't help but think about last spring, and how I didn't think I would live to see this Thanksgiving, or at least that I would not still be living and thriving and growing in Fort Wayne. What a dark time in many ways, but it is such a testimony of the Lord's power and faithfulness and mercy to me, so even for that three-month time - what Hannah and I affectionately refer to as "The Curse" - I am truly thankful.

This Thanksgiving, we picked up six of our dear teen girls and spent the day with them in the kitchen and around the table. We decided that since the first Thanksgiving was about people coming together across cultures to thank God for his love and provision for all of them, we should do that here. So we made sambusas, chipote bread, wontons and wonton soup, mashed potatoes, corn, cranberry spread, cranberry and orange scones, and southern sweet tea. The air was filled with spices and fried oil... and it was delicious! We watched Beauty and the Beast together, and listened to Indian music and of course, Justin Beiber... who we are all quite thankful for. ;) 

I loved watching the girls work together, giggling and singing and talking. I am so thankful for each of them, and the precious times we've had together. I'm thankful for the ways I've seen them grow and mature and blossom into lovely young ladies who are learning what it means to really love. I'm so glad the Lord brought me to this city and gave me these friends. I'm thankful for this year, for all the crazy times of danger and heartbreak and joy and change and peace and adventure, and for the overwhelming love and grace I have received.

After the girls went home, we were quiet for a long time - watching from our big front window as our neighbors draped Christmas lights on their houses, drinking tea, and working on sewing projects like the Jane Austin characters we imagine ourselves to be. No, it wasn't traditional at all, but it was beautiful and rich.

Today we had apple pie for breakfast. Today the Christmas music playlist is being compiled. Today my thanksgiving can't stop. While the feast and the party is over for now, the tradition of thanks is daily, constant, and it just keeps overflowing...

Inscribed and Sealed for a Good Year!

This afternoon, our "Grafted Group" found our own way to celebrate Rosh Hashanah, the Jewish New Year. This was the fourth Jewish holiday we've celebrated together, and even though we are not Jewish by heritage or culture, we are thankful for the ways the Jewish feasts help us focus on the ways God has been faithful to us as people he has mercifully grafted into his family - an honor I am still so humbled by, that he would reach down and make a way for anyone to come to him and be called his children.

Themes in this feast were honey and sweet sangria wine... honey herb chicken, apples with honey, and a dish of cooked carrots, sweet potatoes, pineapple, and mandarin oranges was our meal - so savory and absolutely delicious! While we ate, we shared some of the highlights of this past year, which for me included a new house and community, renewed vision and strength for ministry, and getting to hold my newest nephew... so many new things, and I praise the Lord that he makes all things new, and that he renews his mercies for us day by day.

Wine, honey, and the promise of God from Micah 7

After reflecting, we also shared our hopes for this "new year" - things that we hope for that only God can accomplish - prayers answered, lives redeemed, community built, personal growth... miracles. Oh Lord, we long to see miracles this year.

The Grafted Group

We read some Psalms and worshipped through reflection - Psalm 118:5-9, Psalm 121, and Psalm 130.  Then, with the beautiful truth from Micah 7:18-19, we followed the holiday tradition by going down to the river to symbolically throw our sins to the depth of the sea. On the walk, this became a much more solemn and powerful time than any of us anticipated, as we picked up rocks as symbols of the sins we have held on to and needed to give to the Lord. After all, Jesus died for these things so we could be freed from them. As I prayed and reflected and plopped stones into the murky water of the St. Mary River, I realized it was at that bridge that my chair crossed its 200th mile... a marker I think will be pretty cool to remember.

Hit my 200th mile on the bridge over the river

A symbol to remind us

 Finally, we all had paper shofars (horns) to blow... In the Old Testament, it was blown to call community to gather and scatter, to call for God's rescue and victory, to rejoice and sacrifice and remember the Lord our God.

Blow the shofar for victory and surrender

What a beautiful, wonderful day! What a great beginning to a new year of living out the great adventure of knowing and walking with Jesus! Happy New Year! "And may you immediately be inscribed and sealed for a good year and a good and peaceful life!"

Day 3: The Organic Life

How many mangos does it take to satisfy three African girls? Well, I don't know, but it's more than three... All I know is that buying a bunch of inexpensive fresh fruit and inviting these girls over was a good idea! We still don't have chairs or tables in our house, and no internet, but I'm beginning to realize that isn't such a bad thing. They like sitting or sprawling on the carpet, with a handful of mango, watermelon, and banana, just talking and laughing and sharing truth, love, and life. These are precious moments to me.

I realized this morning that this week I have been happier and more light-hearted than I've been in weeks. I am loving this spontaneous life - being around the neighborhood and available, sparking up conversations on the sidewalks, praying for and picking up kids and bringing them to the house whenever they come to mind. There's a lot of freedom, fullness, and fulfillment in that.

Today's Psalm was 98, and the command for the day was to sing, shout, exalt, and praise the name of the Lord! So... on Day 4 of our new and exciting and organic life, we will obey and see what marvelous things come of it!

Burmese Soup for the Soul

"You need, I give. Burmese food, very good, you strong. Many vitamin, beef, chicken. I get, Ciin make, you eat." Understand? :)

Last week, Meng Pu came to my house early for his English lesson, and was very concerned when he found me laying on my bed asleep. "Sick?" he asked, and I explained that no, I wasn't sick, I just need to rest more because I am weak and need to regain my strength. Since then, he has made it part of his ministry to me to feed me well and nurse me back to health.

He gave detailed instructions to Ciin, his sister and my upstairs housemate, and for the past few days she has brought me a big bowl of homemade Burmese soup to eat. It's the consistency of oatmeal, but with rice, broth, herbs, and finely shredded chicken or beef. She says, "This Samuel eat every day; that's why he big and strong. You need to get big and strong like Samuel!" I look at eight-month-old Baby Samuel, with his pudgy cheeks, pudgy hands, and sweet grin of two tiny teeth... I think, I'm eating baby food, and I am going to gain ten pounds. But they all keep talking about vitamins, so I obediently eat every bite, simultaneously regaining protein and remastering a spoon. And it tastes good too!

Today Meng Pu was back - I thought it was for an ESL lesson, but it was really for a check-up. He wanted to know how I liked my soup, and assured me he would bring more tomorrow for Ciin to cook for me. He told me that Burmese people don't take pills because their food is full of vitamins and makes them very strong. He read to me from the Bible about the power of God, and then laid his hand on mine and prayed for me. Then he told me to go to bed and sleep, and eat Burmese soup later!

It is a good thing to be loved and taken care of...

Christmas treats!

It's beginning to look... and sound... and smell a lot like Christmas around our house, thanks to our awesome international friends! On Saturday, we had some of the teen girls over to do some baking and preparing some treats. When we finished, the Zo church family came in and sang some Christmas carols for us!

Muddy Buddies - peanut butter and chocolate coated Chex mix,
powdered with sugar and sprinkles

Tidings of comfort -
Pretzels with chunks of Carmello bars and walnuts

Tidings of joy -
Pretzels with melted Hugs and M&Ms

Christmas cake - two-layer vanilla cake with whipped vanilla topping, sprinkles, and M&Ms

Zo church Christmas caroling

The best thing about the Christmas holiday is that we get to spend the whole month finding ways to share love and peace and joy with others! How can you do that today?

Just Another Day in Little Burma

Last night Lian made Burmese doughnuts, with rice flour and oil boiling in a wok. They were awesome and delicious! Tonight, Lian made what she described as "fish." The long skinny things with teeth did not look like fish to me, and as Hannah and I picked white meat off sharp bones, I said, "I think we're eating an eel." So to clarify, I played 20 Questions with Lian... Color? Black. Like snake (with gestures and sound effects)? Oh, yes. In water? Yes. ... Yep, we're eating eel. Deep fried eel.

I have to include a cute picture of the boys here - Jo Lien and Moi San. Jo Lien has discovered that my feet on my footrest make a good little stool for him to sit on... which I think is just too cute! Last night I was talking to my mom on Skype, and Jo Lien waved at her. Later when I was working on other things, he came in my room, leaned on my chair and waved at the screen. "Let's see if we can find someone for you to wave at," I whispered, and logged on to Skype again. My grandparents were on, so they got to meet my little brother, who was all too happy to wave and smile at them.

Moi San loves it when we sing praise songs to Jesus (or Zesu) in English or in Chin-Zo. He raises his hands, claps, bounces, and puts his hands over his heart. Jo Lien just jumps around and laughs the whole time. I love that these little ones get so much joy out of praising the Lord!

Midnight snack

Last night was Youth Night, and we had a hilarious and wonderful time together. The secret ingredients of the evening included shaving cream, Cheetos, and choir robes. No, that is not a typo. It was epic. :)

After the kids left, most of the volunteers just stayed and hung out for a while, and it was so fun to get to know our team a little better. You would think after a busy and crazy evening with energetic teenagers, we would be exhausted,  but we weren't! So after the other volunteers left, Hannah Beth, Hannah Michelle, and I decided to make my Grandma Chandler's scones. At 10:30 at night.

As hard as I tried to find a respectable scone cookie cutter like my mom's, all I could find were these big cutters that were hearts, flowers, fishies, and mystery animals... was it a cat, frog, or owl?

So we made our big tacky-shaped scones that thankfully tasted delicious - just like my mom's and my grandma's, and ate them with jam and dulce de leche. Yes, dulce de leche! My friend Patti gave us a little jar of it, straight from and made in Argentina. :) What a perfect midnight snack after an exciting day!

(This morning we shared our scones with Lian and Jo Lien, and we think they enjoyed them too!)

Conquer-and-Devour is my middle name!

"What do you think it is?"
"I don't know... looks like miniature chickens..."

Hilina and I speculated in a whisper about the little headless bodies that Lian was chopping in half with a cleaver at the kitchen counter. She heard the word "chicken," which she knows, and she looked up at us. "Oh no, no chicken," she said. "Is bahd."

"Did she just say it was bat?!" Hilina gasped.
"No, no," I quickly said. "Surely she didn't say bat. I'm sure she said bird."
And our consciences preferred that possibility, so we accepted it.

A little while later, I was reading in my room and Lian - in classic Chin-Zo fashion - came in and put a dish in front of me with two fried halves of an alleged bird, and said, "You eat," and walked away.

"Oh thank you, but I just ate-" Nevermind, she's already gone. Well, why not, right? It just looked like skinny fried chicken wings. I picked the little bit of meat off one half, and it tasted like the dark meat of a turkey. So, not bad. A little gravy might have improved it. At that point curiosity overcame me, so I just had to ask...

"Lian, this is so good! What bird is it?"
"Ah no, no bird," she said. "Different from chicken... I don' know."
"What... color is it?"
"Black."
"And it flies?" (flapping gesture used here)
"Yes, fly at night."

Oh my goodness... My mom called me at that moment and asked what I was doing. "I think I'm eating a bat," I said as I inspected my fried wings again, this time realizing there were hooks at the end of each leg. This definitely tops my list of "Weird Things I Have Eaten."

I asked Hilina if she wanted to try it, and she adamently refused as she backpetaled out the door. She said if it was a bird, then maybe, but there was no way she would eat a bat. I figured that would probably have been true for me too, and that's why I have been cultivating my own "eat first and asked later" policy. It's amazing how one phoneme in one word can affect someone's appetite. I managed to find the grace to eat the second half of the bat by myself. Minus the hooks.

Bittersweet treats

I think I had my first taste of Turkish Delight today at Women's Club. The lady who made it has also made baklava and rice pudding in the past, among other things one just cannot pick up at Wal-mart, and her treats are always good so naturally I had to try it. It wasn't as sweet as I thought it would be... kind of nutty and carmelly, but not in a "Snickers bar" kind of way. Not sure how I feel about it, except that it made me feel rather British and slightly evil, since it's the famous treat of the White Witch in Narnia.

After the Turkish Delight, I had a cup of coffee which was prepared for me by two ladies - a Burmese friend who made it black with sugar, and a Chinese friend who added hazelnut creamer. Again, not sure how I feel about it, because it was, afterall, coffee which I just can't seem to acquire a like for no matter how hard I try, but the sugar and hazelnut was nice... could I have a cup of sugar and hazelnut please? And that would be a liquid sort-of version of Turkish Delight... hmmmm... The bittersweetness of it all is a bit overwhelming...

It was really good to be back at Women's Club. Tea time is so much fun, especially when we haven't been together in weeks - so many hugs and smiles, and even if the ladies don't know much English, they can say, "Hello teacher! How are you!" I had three new students, and five previous students in my little ESL class, and we read the parable of the Good Samaritan. I think they understood it, because when I asked which man had "good love," they all agreed it was the third one, because he stopped and helped, and when I asked which man we should be like, they all agreed that we should be like the third one and "help, clean, give medicine, and take care" of people even when they are not our friends. I love when they want to talk about the story!  And I want so much for them to understand the depth of God's love for them portrayed in stories like this: "That while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us." I think the Holy Spirit still has some work to do before some of the ladies grasp it, but anything is possible through him.

Fruit of the Spirit, from the Spirit

Friday night Pam and I witnessed "The Harvesting of the Watermelon," an epic event by Jayne. For a simple scissor snip, it was quite ceremonious, and this is why... this watermelon was planted by God (see this post for details). Jayne has been very diligent in tending to it, watering it, turning it over, etc., praying that it would be a fruit that brings glory to its Gardener, as a symbol of his work at International House. After she cut it from the vine, we trooped into the kitchen and watched her cut it, all of us holding our breath, hoping it would be ripe inside (none of us have ever harvested a watermelon before!).

Praise God! The inside was a beautiful red, perfect in every way, and its sweet scent filled the kitchen. It looks good, and smells good, so now for the final test....

and it tastes good too! In fact, I think it may be the best watermelon I've ever had.

Brenda and Ron stopped by and the five of us feasted on sweet, crisp, juicy watermelon. Ron took a bite and said, "Wow, this is really fresh!" Pam and Jayne and I laughed, telling him it is about as fresh as a watermelon can possibly get - straight off the vine. Jayne gathered the seeds, and decided that next year she would sow them and see what happens. The backyard may be a watermelon field next year!

I was thinking of that watermelon today, and thinking how it is a fruit of the Spirit... It grew because of love, it brought joy to those who watched it grow, it gave peace by reminding us that God is in control, it required patience, gentleness, and self-control to not harvest it too soon or water it too much, it was a gift shared in kindness and goodness, it represented God's faithfulness to us.

We're praying that this is a sign of more "harvesting of hearts" to come this season to our beloved International House!

The guts to try

Today Pam and I had lunch at an Indian buffet, where we sampled simply everything on the line. We stuffed our faces with curry and potatoes and boasted of our culinary open-mindedness... how we will try anything once. And at that moment, God laughed at us.

When we got home this evening, our house families were having a big dinner and invited us to join in... no, actually that isn't true. Hau Lun put it in front of us and told us to eat. And what was our Chin delicacy of the night? Rice, soup, and beef!... and stomach. Yes. The "frilly" bits were stomach. Mmmm... so about that "try anything once" thing... But Pam was so brave, and took a bite. I had a hard time even picking it up (rice and beef to be eaten with bare hands), but eventually managed to eat some too. It tasted a little more pungent than the other pieces, but the texture was really the worst part, since it was spongey and chewy and... frilly. Ok, enough of that talk...

We decided to offer some American food to our friends, and what could be more American than frozen pizza? So we cut it up small and I took it out on a plate to serve like appetizers. Hau Lun tried to resist and say he was too full, but I insisted. After all, I had eaten the stomach he served me, the least he could do was try tomato paste on bread. So he did, and most of the others tried it too. Little Michael LOVED the pizza and had a lot of fun making a tomatoey mess on... everything. I was proud of him for being so brave as to try food from another culture... future missionary, perhaps??

Those cross-cultural classes last week have already begun to pay off - thanks, Jim and Lina!

Progressive Dinner Extravaganza

I love my new missionary friends!!!

Today was our first day of training together. We got to pray for each other, study the Bible, and we learned about vision, mission, cross-cultural communication, and "the flow of salvation." We also practiced sharing our testimonies with each other. After just one day we feel like we have been friends for years.

Tonight we decided to do a progressive dinner in the dorm, so we went to one apartment for bread and salad, another apartment for spaghetti, and another one for brownies and cupcakes. We sat with different people at each apartment and told stories, played music and laughed a lot. It was an awesome way to get to know everyone, and they are all so cool. It's interesting to be surrounded by people who all are kind of in the same place in life, getting ready to set out on the mission field... there's so much we share, and this time is so precious.

On Thursday night we're having talent-and-culture show... stay tuned for further description (as soon as we actually figure out what it means!). In the mean time, enjoy these pictures of our dinner tonight!

Fish tacos, fun, and fellowship

One of my favorite families to spend time with is the Malchuk family. Last night Kevan and I were invited to their house for fish tacos, games, and great fellowship... and that is just what we had.

Before you dismiss the idea of fish tacos, let me just explain that they really are more delicious than they sound! You put a piece of tilapia on a corn tortilla, and add Mary's mixture of mango, avocado, and red pepper, then a bit of sour cream and cheese... mmmm... it was marvelous!

And before you dismiss the belief that games can be utterly entertaining, let me advise you to play "The Game of Things" and "Last Word" with the Malchuk kids. If that isn't enough, combine the hilarious thought patterns of Kevan and Alan into one team member, and well... you either get mass chaos or inspiration overload. Either way, you'll have a great time.

And if there is anyone pitiful enough to try to dismiss the value of great fellowship, let me paint a picture for you... of a family and friends lingering around a dining room table drinking tea and coffee and eating homemade cookies after dinner, sharing stories and jokes and laughter, discussing books and movies and games and art projects, and listening to one of their number playing a harp (yes, a real harp). It may seem like nothing out of the ordinary is happening on the surface, but even the common, everyday-ness of the scene shimmers with the transcending reality that this is how life is meant to be... this is what true fellowship looks like among those who trust and rest and find their peace and joy in the Lord.

It's only a shadow of what we will get to experience in heaven, but doesn't that in itself make your bones tingle? If this - this time of love and inspiration around a table, this time of delight and intimacy hunkered down together on couches and easy chairs - is so sweet and precious, who can imagine what it will be like in the absense of a fallen world and in the very presence of our Jesus? Thank you, Lord, for these glimpses of eternity... for this bit of heaven we can sample on earth.

anvils, roosters, and the peace of God

I tried to write a prayer update, and couldn't think of anything to say. Same prayer requests in place: jobs for the Burmese men, settling in for the newcomer families, continued discipleship of new Christians, clear message for seekers... doesn't feel like much has changed or even happened this week. I think it's because I have been very distracted and, dare I say it, self-absorbed. Because you see, my time here in Fort Wayne is running short, and there is now the big Question that feels like it is looming over my head like an anvil: "What next?" I don't want to dig into the details of all the analyzed thoughts and weighed options that have gone through my mind in the past five days, but I do ask that you pray for me to have wisdom and decisiveness soon. Because the Question is clouding my vision and reducing my energies to myself, which is definitely not a good thing in ministry. I may not know much yet, but I do know I am not called to confusion, frustration, worry, or selfishness.

On the lighter side, Thang Ngaih's sister and her family are here visiting, which means we now have twelve people hanging out in our beloved Angaying Inn! It also means there are two whole roosters (and I do mean whole) soaking in the sink today... they scared me to death when I saw them this morning, and I pray that my dear, well-intentioned neighbors don't try to make me eat them tonight. I will refrain from posting pictures, for your sake and for the sake of your dreams tonight, because my fearless little brother even called it "disgusting." I thought about writing a requiem for them but decided that would be much too morbid. Maybe I can try offering the family some of my oatmeal-craisen-dark-chocolate-chip cookies (Bethany's recipe!) as a peace offering.

In the mean time, I'm meditating on the Scripture that Pam and I read together this morning in Colossians 3: "...you were called to peace..." What a beautiful and simple calling.

Ten Fruit Smoothie

Yesterday I went to Krogers with my friend Hilina to buy fruit. It felt like Noah's ark, because we got two of everything in the fruit stands: oranges, bananas, strawberries, raspberries, blueberries, kiwis, mangos, limes, and avacadoes (which isn't a fruit but it really wants to be). We had pineapple juice at home, which makes the 10th fruit.

Then last night, Hilina took all of these colorful foods and cut them up - you wash the blueberries and raspberries off, peel and slice the oranges, peel and dice the bananas, cut strawberries in half, peel and cut the kiwi into quarters, peel and dice the mango, cut the lime in half (squeeze juice over finished product), and cut, pit, and scoop out the avacado. The kitchen smelled so sweet and we all got sticky by tasting "the scraps" and licking the juice off our fingers.

Roshni claimed she didn't like kiwi or avacado or blueberries and wanted Hilina to leave them out. "But then it wouldn't be TEN fruit smoothie," I tried to reason, but six-year-olds rarely change their minds based on reason. Crafty manipulation seems to be much more effective. So I said, "Well that's fine, she can make you the boring kind and then she can add all the best stuff in for us to enjoy. It's probably best this way, so we don't have to share with you. Hilina, whatever you do, don't let Roshni have our special fruits!" And of course, this caused Roshni to want more than anything to try our "special fruits," and of course, she loved them, much to my mock dismay.

After all the slicing, dicing and scooping (in the case of our poor odd-ball avacado), Hilina started to fill the blender. Roshni thought the blender was too noisy, but I was actually quite impressed with how much power it had, to churn through such a variety of texture. There was so much fruit that Hilina couldn't fit it all in at once, so she blended down half the ingredients and slowly added more until the blender was completely full of mushy juice... or juicy mush...

I don't have a picture of the final product because, frankly, it isn't beautiful. It would never get a prize for being Aesthetically Pleasing. Looks a bit like mushy peas baby food. (Thank you, avacado!) But my goodness, is it delicious! And it's super-healthy too... no added sweetners, just pure fruit juice. I like to eat/drink mine slowly with a spoon, because if I concentrate, I can taste each fruit flavor and how they all work together and compliment each other.
I wrote a "Fruit of the Spirit" Bible study series a few years ago, comparing the qualities in Galatians to actual fruits. I think it might be really fun to adapt the fruitiness of it to match the ingredients for Ten Fruit Smoothie. Yes, there are ten fruits, and only nine fruit of the Spirit, but the lime twist could just be a fun addition. It would make a great object lesson... Hmmmm... nothing like fruit to get my creative Bible study juices flowing...

My Ethiopian Family

Last Friday night, Leigh Ann and I were invited to Hilina's house for dinner. We got to meet her mom and dad, her brothers, and her sister, as well as her nephew.

We thought we would sample the exotic Ethiopian fare, but instead Hilina's mom spent all day

cooking up an "American feast" in our honor. When we came around the table, she served us each lasagna, two pieces of fish, boiled potatoes and carrots, beets, deviled eggs, rice with corn and peas, and cabbage. :) Never realized that American foods could be displayed so ethnically... it was amazing. She urged us to "eat! eat!" Then we had hot tea and chocolate cake.

Her dad talked a lot about Ethiopia, and at one point he said, "This is a good country... a blessed country." I started to smile and nod and say that I knew, and he held up his hand. "No, you don't know. Americans, they cannot know how blessed they are. Only people from other countries who come here really know this." I think this must be true.

After dinner, we watched the World Cup and played with nephew William. As we got ready to leave, her mom took my face in her hands and kissed both of my cheeks. Something inside me wanted to cry: "I have an Ethiopian mama now!"

I'm so thankful for the love and generosity that has been poured out on me by my Ethiopian family.

The Usual

Quick correction: Yesterday my girl-power high apparently got the better of me, and it occurred to me that I had said I wanted to "take over the world." That should have said "take on the world," or "save the world," or some sort of non-world-domination-sounding variation. While sometimes I think I could do a better job than the world leaders we have, I could not, would not, and have no desire to take over the world.

I am not a professional restaurant critic, but if I was, I would rave about "Bleu" - a restaurant that is here in Winston-Salem. Last night my friend Laura treated me to a birthday dinner there. It is our "treat ourselves" place that we go to on occasion because we love the atmosphere, the service, and of course, the food.

Usually I like to order different things when I go to a place like Bleu, because every item on the menu makes my mouth water. But Laura and I have committed ourselves to a "usual." And even though we only go once in a while, we hope that eventually the staff will recognize us and just ask, "Will you have the usual?" Maybe they'll even see us coming and have it ready for us when we are seated! Funny, the things I like to imagine... I think everyone must secretly want to have a "usual"... I think it's tied to our desire to be truly known...

Anyway, our "usual" at Bleu is the grilled salmon and asparagus in lemon butter sauce, and loaded sweet potatoes with toasted marshmellows and nuts on top. There is just something about the combination of those flavors that is just heavenly. So if you're in town and are looking for a treat, go to Bleu and ask for the Connie-Laura Usual. And enjoy!