Today was an interesting day at Chic-fil-A. At about 10:30am, we got news that at the Rush's across the street, they had been robbed and someone had been shot. It was a little too close to home, I think, for most of us. We never did hear if the person who was shot was ok or not...and as far as I know, they didn't catch the guy who did it. We had cops in and out of our store most of the day...it was a comforting to know they were around. And had they not been, I'm sure Bekah could have taken the guy out with her money drawer...so I felt safe either way. Anyhow, it was an interesting day...and I praise God for our safety...Rush's is literally just across the street.

Anyhow, also, wanted to let you know, I am currently putting Thanksgiving pics up, so they will be up yet tonight under the "Photos" section...and then under "CIU" and then "Thanksgiving". :) Enjoy!

Update on Pics: I now have MOST of them up...I had difficulty with several, so check back next week and hopefully I will have the last ones up by then. :)

My newest revelation is just how much I love to hear Christmas music in America. That hit me on the way home yesterday. :) So I am back in SC now. The weather is rather warm and rainy, a drastic change from the bitter cold of the midwest...and I find myself in utter confusion as to which I really prefer!

Anyhow, praise God for safe travel. I pulled in here at about 3am this morning...its funny how amazing kids are. They can drive you crazy and you can be crazy about them and they can make a 12 hour trip into a 15 hour trip. :) But I wouldn't change it for the world. It was a perfect week with my family...all of them!

Hopefully, I will get pics up either today or tomorrow. Then you can all see what a great family I have. :) Hehe. At least, I think they are all pretty great.

Tonight as I was packing my bag in preparation to leave tomorrow for break, I picked it up to see how heavy it was...and said to myself, "Hm, Self, you probably have about 20 pounds to go..." Then I had to step back and laugh to myself...alas, this time, I am not flying to my destination!! :) So tomorrow I am heading out to my cousin's before we take off to meet up with the rest of the family. Have I mentioned the fact that I have been looking forward to this Thanksgiving for an entire year? It will be very difficult to top last year's Thanksgiving with Cori where we spent hours on end in the kitchen and seriously cooked enough food for the whole apartment building, but that is in a league of it's own I think. :)

Anyhow...here are some things I will miss this week if I can't get back to my computer...

HAPPY BIRTHDAY (for real this time!) to my buddy PHIL!! :) (On the 24th...refer to Nov. 4th if you want to see who Phil is!)

and

HAPPY THANKSGIVING on that same day to y'all. ;) I hope you all eat lots and have much to be thankful for.

I was going to write a list of things that I am thankful for...but I think there are too many and to limit myself to only 10 or so just won't do justice to what God has done in my life over the last year. :)

So, are you dressed today? Did you get up and put on your clothes this morning?

I asked my fourth graders this question last year one day when they were being particularly nasty to one another. Then I read to them this passage:

"Therefore, as God's chosen people, holy and dearly loved, clothe yourselves with compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness and patience. Bear with each other and forgive whatever grievances you may have against one another. Forgive as the Lord forgave you. And over all these virtues put on love, which binds them all together in perfect unity."
Colossians 3:12-14

This became our passage for the year and when I heard them being mean, I would say, "Hey, did you get dressed this morning?" So it didn't really work all that well, as anyone who saw my classroom last year can attest to, but the idea is wonderful. I can say that because it was not mine. A guy by the name of Scott challenged a whole group of us a couple years ago with this passage. It is so important for ministry...but also, just for daily life. I read this passage this evening and was humbled because I realized that I had not gotten dressed today...I was not loving people and I was certainly not patient with those around me. Thankfully, we are forgiven and tomorrow is a new day...so, reminder to you and I...don't forget to get dressed!!

I never knew LOTR could be so hilarious! Our guy friends just make everything around here more interesting..hehe. :)

Fun times...it was a chilly night...I wonder if that's why the power went out just after midnight? We couldn't even finish the movie! Reminded me so much of the days in Dakar...we sat there by candlelight for awhile before realizing that the power was just not going to come back on.

Bekah, the MVP on her team (Go North!), Steph and I at the North-South Game last weekend. :)

I thought it was time for another list...and in honor of my time in Senegal and the people who are so dear to my heart there...here is my top 10 list of things I miss from Senegal:

10. The candle mood lighting that was necessary when the power went out.
9. IBC and singing of the Holy Ghost Powa'
8. French pasteries and breads (espeically the creme filled ones at that one place on the way to the airport...not to mention the rotissiere chicken!)
7. Driving with a lack of rules (though not so much the two lane road turned nine lane)!
6. Random Beach Days with Saucie (oh, and the monkey fruit juice!)
5. Late night basketball with Cori and Phil.
4. Coke in glass bottles!
3. Ataya with Seydu and Mountaga.
2. Playing soccer with my kids.
1. Cori...and Barb, Ann, Tammy, Phil, Jay, Lisa, Sarah...and all my other close friends!!

We, the fans watching the infamous North-South game...Meet my friends...Anthony, Steph, (me), and Paul. It was a chilly night! :)

Wow. They really a different breed down here! :) hehe.

This is a serious game!!! The girls played, then the guys.

This was the last thing I expected to see as I walked onto the school property where the North-South game was played...does anyone else recognize this!? Go Hawks!

Last night House 17 went out for Mexican...fried ice cream was a must! :)

I have to admit that I am a bit embarrassed about where I learned this from...however, in Senegal, I would often times watch FRIENDS with Cori. Anyhow, I remember one episode when Ross challenged them to write down all 50 States...I can't remember all the details, but I know that there was always one that they couldn't come up with. So tonight, House 17 went out for Mexican. As our mouths were burned up by some seriously hot salsa and then cooled down by some seriously yummy fried ice cream, it came to my mind that we should attempt this. So, I passed out napkins and we got 4 pens and got my timer set for 4 minutes.

At the end, I was surprised at how well we all did. Not boasting, but I came out in the lead with 46 states (ok, so being a 4th grade teacher has its perks!). So we decided that I would name off the ones I had and then we would figure out the last 4. We got 3 of the last 4...but just like on FRIENDS...we could not get the last state. I was convinced that it was some New England state because I do not know those well. I am ashamed to admit that the state we missed was Nebraska. Right next door to Iowa and I completely missed it. :)

Anyhow, wanted to share the fun times...and challenge you to give it a shot. If you do, let me know how you do! :) 4 minutes to name as many of the 50 states as you can. :) Have fun!

See if you see a pattern in these two verses....

"For He chose us in Him before the creation of the world to be holy and blameless in His sight...."
(Ephesians 1:4)

"In Him we were also chosen, having been predestined according to the plan of Him who works out everything in conformity with the purpose of His will..."
(Ephesians 1:11)

Ok, so if you read the title, you know what I am getting at here. I'm not going to touch the predestined thing for fear of the circular argument that it brings about, but rather emphasize the words "chose" and "chosen". I was reading Ephesians this afternoon and ran across these two verses and was struck by that word. I have written about this before, but it gets me everytime. And in light of the whole predestined thing, just think about it. "Before the creation of the world" He chose us. He chose me. He chose you. All who love and obey Him, He has chosen us...out of everyone in the world, throughout history and the future, He chose me. With me in mind, He sent His Son to die a most shameful death on the cross. Why does a bride shine on her wedding day? Yes, she is in love. Yes, it is the happiest day of her life. But even more, she is loved...she is chosen by that man. Sometimes things in life make us question if God really loves us...but just remember, before all creation, He chose YOU to love and to give the life of His Son for. I don't know about you, but that melts away all of the hardness I feel in my heart in those times.

Just some lyrics that are echoing between my head and heart today...it is a reflective day so I cannot say much else...I have bolded the lines which are speaking to my heart the most.

I Surrender All

All to Jesus I surrender, all to Him I freely give
I will ever love and trust Him, in His presence daily live
I surrender all, I surrender all
All to Thee, my blessed Saviour, I surrender all.

Before the Throne of God Above

Before the throne of God above
I have a strong and perfect plea
A great High Priest whose name is Love
Who ever lives and pleads for me
My name is graven on His hands
My name is written on His heart
I know that while in heaven He stands
No tongue can bid me thence depart
No tongue can bid me thence depart

When Satan tempts me to despair
And tells me of the guilt within
Upward I look and see Him there
Who made an end to all my sin
Becasue the sinless Saviour died
My sinful sould is counted free
For God the Just is satisfied
To look on Him and pardon me
To look on Him and pardon me

How Much You Love Me

The nails in Your hands, the nail in Your feet
They tell me how much You love me
The thorns on Your brow, they tell me how
You bore so much shame to love me

And when the heavens pass away
All Your scars will still remain
And forever they will say
How much You love me

So I want to say...Forever my love
Forever my heart, forever my life is Yours
Forever my love, forever my heart
Forever my life is Yours.

Happy 230th Birthday to the USMC...and to my two favorite Marines...

My Dad...

and my brother. :)

Do you ever have those days where thoughts are just flittering through your mind like butterflies in the summer stillness? I remember once when we had first moved to Iowa looking outside our sliding backdoor in the house in Circle Terrace and seeing just hundreds of monarch butterflies dancing around in the breeze. Maybe I dreamed it, but regardless, it was amazing. My thoughts are maybe not so amazing, but there are so many of them all going in different directions and its hard to keep up!

I wonder what God is doing in my life and in my heart right now. He has brought some ideas to mind that I must seriously consider...and in considering them, think on what is wisest and what is His desire rather than mine.

I've also been thinking about different women in the Bible that we know relatively little about, such as Abraham's wife, Sarah...and Noah's wife, Mrs. Noah as Boyd's Bears call her. They must have been remarkable women...I mean, Sarah's husband said probably pretty out of the blue, "Honey, we are moving, pack up everything and let's go." And he didn't know where, but she supported him in his submission to God and went. Mrs. Noah had her husband building an ark in the midst of a long drought with all the neighbor's laughing at them...but she must have supported him because she too was on that boat when the rains hit and the underground springs let loose.

Also, I think Mary of Mary and Martha is one pretty neat lady. We've talked a lot about her in my Gospels class...and I have never really noticed her before...but I think she is becoming one of my favorite people in the Bible very quickly. If you want to know why, you can ask me. :)

I've also been pondering the fact that I seem to have more thoughts pressing in on my mind on days when I really need to be able to concentrate on homework (ie, today!)...and when thoughts are there, you just can't push them out of the way...well, at least I can't. :)

Another ongoing tension in our house is the name of the utensil in the pic below. Bekah in insistent on it being called a "turner" and I always call it a "spatula". Bekah has one up on me in that she was a home ec teacher and actually studied this stuff...however, i noticed that nearly everyone called it a spatula...even williams-sonoma called it such, much to her dismay. However, I think we could find a middle ground by calling it a pancake turner...but understanding that its really a spatula. Ah, the joys of the english language. :)

So today I have been led several times to think upon my past and God's track record with me. And I must say that as I have pondered it, I have been much impressed and very encouraged that God does indeed know what He is doing and with that trust and knowledge, I am able to simply hold things loosely in my hands and trust that God has the best in mind...be it painful or exciting. He's doing things in my life right now that I don't really understand, but I am approaching with a eager curiosity to see what He is going to do next. I love that about God. We don't know what He is doing or what is coming next, but we can rest easy because God's got it.

Another question that I need your participation on, please sign in and let me know: What is the correct term for this kitchen utensil that Bekah is holding?

**New pics up. Go to "Photos" at the right and then under "CIU" there is a new set of photos called "Tanzania Team Building"...check them out and meet the team!

Ok, I will openly confess here and now that I am the biggest geek I know. Most of you who know me know that I get pretty excited over little things. Well, today I broke down and asked Eric and Bekah to get me a soccerball while they were out and about...they picked this one out for me and Eric is even going to teach me a few skills...I've never really played soccer except with my students the last couple years and I really miss it...so now I am going to learn a bit and find people to play with me who will be as nice to me as my kids were about my lack of skills. :)

This is my buddy from Senegal, Mike, who I got to hang out a bit with last Sunday when i was back in Iowa. He's home on furlough and just happened to be in Iowa at the same time as me! It's always good to talk Senegal with someone who knows Senegal. :) Fun times!

So I completely messed up. Yesterday was not Phil's birthday...although he apparently went ahead and celebrated his birthday with a pizza in honor of my screw up. So his birthday is not for another 20 days. Good grief. :) I was going to take the picture down, but then realized its already tomorrow (Saturday) and that it just wasn't worth it. :)

Have you ever heard something and it just didn't sit right with you, but you can't put your finger on why? I experienced that tonight. On Thursday night in my class, we took a mock Myers-Briggs personality test...I tested the same as the last time I took it...INFP (and by they way, I've never had so many people tell me that they were surprised to see me as an introvert!)...but I'm very much on the feeling side of things. So tonight I heard something and its just not sitting right...but I've learned through experience that we can't always depend on our feelings, often times they will lead us astray. Anyhow, God is good and will make sense of this. :) As for now, I'm going to bed. Just wanted to post my mistake about Phil's birthday. Oh well, two birthdays in one month would be nice from time to time. :)

Happy Birthday to my buddy, Phil!! :)

Studying is not a gift of mine, I have determined. I like to learn. I like to read. I do not like to study for tests. Maybe that's why I quit giving my students tests in science and social studies last year and we did projects instead. It just made more sense to me.

Anyhow, today was day 3 at Chic-fil-a. It was an adventure as I started bagging food today. I had Bekah standing there watching over me. It's always a little tricky when you don't even fully know the menu! So God is funny. I went into work trying desperately to be cheerful, but just wasn't. You know those days? So I started praying about it as I was filling drinks (a rather brainless job)...and I found myself an hour later just smiling for no particular reason and joy in my heart. I love when God answers prayers so quickly. :)

Ok, I wanted to share this because I know I need wisdom in my life right now in a lot of areas (no, not because of my test tomorrow morning!). Our brother James said, "But the wisdom that comes from heaven is first of all pure; then peace-loving, considerate, submissive, full of mercy and good fruit, impartial and sincere." I love that. I mean, he just bluntly tells us what true wisdom looks like. Are the decisions I am making pure? Do they partner with peace? Are they considerate of those in my life? Am I being submissive where I need to be in my decisions? Are they full of mercy? Does good fruit come from them? Are they not biased? And finally...am I being sincere with wisdom? These are some serious questions I have been asking myself today as I have processed some stuff in my life. I just love this recipe of wisdom...I mean, its applicable...its helpful...its practical. Ok, I could unpack that a lot more...but I think for now I will get back to my studying and leave you to unpack that in your own life. I just wanted to share a little of what God has been showing me. :)

I wonder if when my profs figured out how much time our assignments would take if they included break times. And I wonder if they were liberal with the break time or if I am just focusing really well today or if I'm not answering these questions in the fullness they deserve. I've been studying for the last 3 hours solid on an assignment that is due in 3 hours and I'm nearly done, though I thought it was supposed to take me 6 hours to complete...so I'm a little wary of my work, but we'll see.

So it's break time.

Today in chapel I was very pleased. There was a nice African man who spoke at chapel time, he was from Ghana. The moment he started talking, a big grin crossed my face and I knew that this was going to be good. I was not disappointed. I'll leave you with some tid bits from his talk to ponder and comment on if you like...but I have to get back to my books for now. :)

"The soil of Africa has been so fertilized by the blood, sweat, and tears of early missionaries..."

"No country can be called "closed" where there is someone willing to go, instead we call them "creative access" countries."

"Most Christians in the Western world suffer from a mild case of Christianity, and are afraid to catch the real thing!"

"If you want to follow Jesus, you need to be ready to die for Him...if you are not willing to die for Him, maybe you are not ready to live for Him."