Missionary Monday

We have the most incredible friends. I keep wondering why God has blessed us with such great friends and honestly I am in awe of it. There is Bob and Shannon who spent two years in a Muslim country in Asia and continue to minister to the persecuted there even from here while working and raising 3 beautiful daughters, one of which is severely autistic, and another child on the way. Their faith in the Lord's Will and their heart to reach the lost is a passion that you cannot ignore. There is Eileen and Jerry - adopting 3 children from Ethiopia after adopting twins a few years ago and an incredible testimony to Christ everywhere they go. Megan and Kostya are selling what little they own to follow God's calling to the Ukraine with 3 young children in tow in order to help train pastors there, knowing hospitals and conveniences will be too far away to be of much use to them. Brian and Mandy are adjusting to new parenthood in a country where little English is spoken and most people completely misunderstand Christianity. We have dear friends in China who know that they will go two years between visits with their precious grandchildren and who can be deported at the drop of a word but they ache to see those bowing in worship to ancestral gods bowing their hearts to the One who died for them. There are David and Dawn, Sarah and David, Russ and Cindy, Debbie and Steve, and numerous others who have turned their backs on very lucrative careers to help train future pastors and missionaries with a salary hardly enough to keep them above the poverty level. There is CT - a man with a testimony so incredible most people think it is fiction - whose love for the Lord and desire to grow in the Word is such a great encouragement to everyone around him. There are Beth, Wittney and Renee who remind me to be a better mother and teacher, role model, neighbor, friend and servant. I could go on and if you are one of my friends reading this, you deserve to be mentioned but if I didn't include you it's because this post could never be long enough for all the blessings of friends! Why do I post this under "Missionary Monday"? Because all of you are missionaries. I have personally witnessed you reaching out to the lost, your neighbors, your family. I have seen you walk the talk. And today I thank you for being a missionary.

From Baghdad Prayer Patrol - Praise!

Can I share some good news with you?
Last week there was not a single military casualty; Iraqi or U.S., in Anbar Province. This is the first time that has happened since March 2003.

These statistics reflect the changes since mid-June, which was the peak of the troop surge (and also the Baghdad Prayer Patrol surge) until the beginning of this week.

- Violence in and around Baghdad is down 59 percent.

- Car bombs are down 65 percent.

- Casualties from car bombs and roadside bombs are down by 80 percent.

- Casualties from enemy attacks down 77 percent.

- Operations against Iraqi security forces are down 62 percent.

- Assassination attempts for sectarian reasons are down 72 percent.

Do I hear an amen!
Thank you so much for your faithfulness in prayer.
Only heaven will reveal how much our little Prayer Patrol is contributing to these successes.

Let us not grow weary in well-doing.
Our troops are still there, the Iraqi people are still suffering, our job is not done. Rejoice, give thanks to God for His faithfulness, be encouraged, then strap on your boots and get back on patrol, we've got a job to finish.

I am honored to run with you to the battle,
Wayne Dillard
Baghdad Prayer Patrol

P.S. Please pass this good news on and recruit some more prayer troops, so we can finish well in Iraq and bring these heroes home.

Join me on patrol at: Baghdad Prayer Patrol

Warning: Not for "tickled ears"

Last Sunday in our church our pastor (who is very soft-spoken, humble, quiet) got pretty riled up as he proclaimed that we want everything FROM Jesus except Jesus Himself. How true - for me, anyway. I love the new hymn "In Christ Alone" and I've determined that for me focusing only on Christ is a full-time job without adding the second job of judge or jury for others. During this week those words have rang in my heart again and again - here's where I have heard their chorus:

On Monday a friend and her 2 teenage daughters went to hear Josh McDowell and he stressed to the parents that they need to not point only to the Bible but more importantly to the author of the Bible - the Word Himself. What good is looking to the Bible if you don't see the author who is Creator, Savior, Redeemer, King of Kings, Jesus Christ Himself in it?

On Tuesday I ran across this quote tucked away in my prayer journal - one of my favorite quotes - "Jesus is something to you but is HE everything?" from E.M. Bounds.

On Tuesday I also glanced at Jimmy's blog and found one of my favorite hymns - "Be Thou My Vision" - the essence of desiring Christ in every particle of my life.

On Wednesday I got a devotion forwarded to me from a dear friend who is serving overseas in very difficult and dangerous situations and the message was from 1 Cor. 2:2 "For I determined not to know anything among you, save Jesus Christ, and him crucified."
Period.
Amen.

Missionary Monday

Say "Hello" to a fascinating family raising three little ones as they are called to minister to the lost in Bolivia. They have battled everything from the flu to having one of their young children have to undergo surgery. This is while trying to learn a new language, adjust to a very different culture and trying to establish some relationships in the community. Please take a few minutes today and pray for John and Jenny and their sons - Caleb, Luke and Elijah. Pray that the Lord would heal them quickly and help them see what He wants them to do each day. Praise the Lord for their faithfulness and willingness to go and tell!

Quote of the Day

The leaves fall,
the wind blows,
and the farm country
slowly changes from
the summer cottons
into its winter wools.

-Henry Beston

(Photo by Matt Creech )

Frugal Friday - homemade "stuff"

Homemade Chocolate Syrup

1/2 cup cocoa (I use store brand)
1 cup water
2 cups sugar
1/8 tsp salt
1/4 tsp vanilla

Mix cocoa, sugar and water in pot. Stir to dissolve. Bring to a boil and boil for 1 1/2-2 minutes. ( The longer you boil, the thicker the syrup will be) Turn off the heat and let cool, then add to one of your empty choc syrup bottles or to a mason jar and keep in fridge. [Inexpensive and easy with no additives! Look for great deals on cocoa between now and Christmas and stock up!]


Homemade Maple Syrup
My mom always made our pancake syrup and I never knew why. After running across her recipe recently and pricing it out, now I know! It costs a tiny fraction of store-bought pancake syrup and doesn't have all the preservative junk in it.

1 cup brown sugar
1 cup white sugar
2 cups water
1/8 (dash) salt
3/4 tsp maple flavoring (more or less to taste)
Bring first 4 ingredients to boil, remove from het, stir in maple flavoring and let cool. Leftovers can be refrigerated. (You can experiment with the combination of sugars to equal 2 cups and the amount of flavoring, all based on your preferences). [Again, sugar goes on sale and some coupons, too, in the fall and around Christmas so stock up. I even found a great deal on maple flavoring last Christmas. ]

Pretty gift from friend

Yesterday I watched my friends' seven children while they went to a doctors appt. They have 6 girls and one boy and found out yesterday that they are expecting another girl!! They grow and sell vegetables, he works at the post office, she homeschools and they also grow pumpkins and flowers to sell, have goats and chickens and I don't know when they sleep with all of that going on! As a gift for watching the children Karen gave me this that she had made:It adds a beautiful touch to my fall tablecloth! Thanks, Karen and Congrats!

Another Blog??!!!

As if I don't spend enough time on the computer already, I've started another blog. The sole purpose is to journal our decisions and research about the farm, establishing the pecan orchard, contacts and information, etc. My hope is that in years to come any of our children/grandchildren that are interested in carrying on Sweet Branch will appreciate knowing how we decided to do what we did. In the meantime, it gives me a place to log information and help me "think out loud on paper" as an Economics professor that I worked for during college used to say. If you are interested in farming or pecans you're welcome to check it out. I also love quotes and will accumulate my favorite farming quotes there.

Welcome little Kate Joy !!

I just got the news that a wonderful young couple who has dedicated themselves to the Lord and His work in Macedonia have added a new baby to their family! Rejoice with Brian and Mandy for the Lord's blessing of Kate Joy Davis! How wonderful!!

Missionary Monday

Here is a video from Audrey in Japan - it's made just with her small digital camera but her heart is a lot bigger than her camera :) ! Pray for her and all the young people who are on the mission field today. When many young people are pursuing personal gain these wonderful young people are living away from friends, family (and familiar foods!) to help reach the lost and dying world around us. Praise the Lord for them!!

Wells Family at State Fair

A Devotion passed to me from a friend...

This devotion is excellent
and I encourage you
to stop and read it
when it's quiet
and you can really ponder.....

Officially a "man" today....

Twenty-one years ago this morning the Lord blessed us with our second son. It's amazing to think that he is 21 and yet somehow he has been a grown-up man for quite a while so it's not so unthinkable. It's fun on birthdays to think about all the blessings we've gotten from being chosen by the Lord to be the parents of the birthday child so here's a few memories -
Right after birth he cried a soft, almost "calling" cry - very opposite from the cry of his older brother! Just a quick reminder to me that God created each of them very different, with their own special purpose and reason. At age 8 months he couldn't walk yet but would climb the slide from bottom to top, turn around and slide down (talk about giving a mother a heart attack!!). From an early age to even now he loves to observe and analyze anything in nature - rocks, flowers, spiderwebs, frogs, anything ... and then of course bring it into the house to keep :) . At age 5 he didn't want to even learn the alphabet because it kept him from being outside but by age 7 he was reading 2 years ahead of his age. At age 8 he announced to us that he wanted to be a "volcanologist" and study volcanoes up close (ayeeee!!!), had grown his own experimental cotton plants, had 2 guinea pigs as pets, and had a vast array of "collections" under his bed! At age 11 or 12 he and a friend started collecting computer parts and he self-taught himself more about computers than most programmers with advanced degrees. (Check out his website). At age 14 he developed an intense interest in all things military and begged us to join Civil Air Patrol. He excelled there and went on to two successful years at West Point before deciding that military life wasn't his calling after all. Now I look and see a very loving son with a smart mind, willing and working hands, a big heart and a strong desire to do God's will. Mighty proud to call you son and wish you a very Happy Birthday, Russ!!! Thanks for making 21 years of our lives a true blessing!

Wheeewww.... what a week!

Well, tonight I sat down to look over days of emails and tried to catch up a little on the cyberspace side. This week we have had sinus infections, sick children, hubby's regular diabetes check-up, a relative's funeral, car problems, and just "life stuff". We didn't finish week 7 of school but that's OK because my youngest ones learned an important lesson 101 - "being there for family when bad stuff happens". Better than any textbook I know! And they also got to see some cousins that live out of state and re-establish their friendship with them.

We got rain - almost a full inch!!! - which is more than the total rainfall here since the beginning of June. Crazy, huh?! This morning dawned foggy and misty but we got in soccer pictures before it rained enough for them to call off the game.

That fact along with the cancellation of my daughter's performance at a local harvest festival (the acrobatics teacher was sick) freed up a mid-morning and early afternoon that we thought was going to be full so we dashed over to Oakview Park for their annual Heritage Day and enjoyed hayrides, carriage rides with HUGE horses compliments of "Cowboys for Christ", old-fashioned games, all types of farm animals and pets, antique cars, lots of interesting booths and demonstrations like blacksmithing, dog costume shows and even cane pole fishing - all for FREE!! Definitely worth the trip over there if you live anywhere close by. And as an aside, we saw an old friend showing his pottery and a new friend whose pecan orchard we visited last week. The park boasts a small pecan orchard of its own and we hope to go back in November for their "Pecan Day".

Finished off the week with a good meal tonight of salad, garlic bread, stuffed shells and brownies shared by family and a new friend. I'm so thankful for every day, every trial and every person that has shared our week in sickness, health, sadness, joy, love and the wonderful hope we have because of what our Savior did. For those aware of my 5yo's health problems, they are continuing to recur so please continue to pray that the doctors will be able to have wisdom in diagnosis when we go for further tests on Tuesday. Thanks and have a great week!
-F

October = Birthdays

In our family we have a proliferation of October birthdays. Sons, nieces, sisters, best friends, sister-in-laws, and the beat goes on... la dee da dee dah... (OK, for those who knew what I meant from that - you have had too many birthdays like me!!). Anyway, we kicked the month off by having my Brother-in-law's birthday bash at the end of September and it will be one after another until Nov. 1st (including Oct. 31st!!). It's really fun but it gets to be confusing how to juggle it all now that so many are in college away from home, have boyfriends/girlfriends and their families, all the other activities and flurries of October - soccer, dance, harvest festivals, state fair, battle re-enactments, more harvest festivals - and then of course somewhere in the mix has to come laundry and school and vacuuming and those other annoying interruptions from the parties! The worst part? By November I don't even want to think about how many pounds of cake I have consumed !! And that's BEFORE Thanksgiving!!

Missionary Monday

Well, technology is a wonder and for all the evil spread by it there are wonderful, awesome things that happen, too. As with anything, it's all in the hands (and hearts) that use the tool. For instance, my friend Eileen is able to see digital photos of the children they are going to be bringing into their family from Ethiopia. Friends in a dangerous country are able to get messages to family and friends at home that they are doing well and even having a chance to witness among the chaos! And thirdly, I have learned that the friend of a friend has a real heart and burden for the millions of lost souls in Japan. Since my oldest son just returned from a trip there and my second son's best friend has been learning Japanese for several years it just drew me in (and she does a great job on her blog!). Start HERE to learn how her journey has progressed since she arrived in July and spend the day praying for her today. Follow her journey and look at her pictures (I love pictures!) and Audrey - May the Lord lift you up and bless you as you bend your knees and heart for the Japanese people today and every day. Today we pray this scripture for you: "For this reason I kneel before the Father, from whom his whole family in heaven and on earth derives its name. I pray that out of his glorious riches he may strengthen you with power through his Spirit in your inner being, so that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith. And I pray that you, being rooted and established in love, may have power, together with all the saints, to grasp how wide and long and high and deep is the love of Christ, and to know this love that surpasses knowledge—that you may be filled to the measure of all the fullness of God. Now to him who is able to do immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine, according to his power that is at work within us, to him be glory in the church and in Christ Jesus throughout all generations, for ever and ever! Amen." Ephesians 3:14-21