A Smashing Fullabulent Day!

 
I've just finished reading "The BFG" to Mariama and Lydia over the phone and I do believe that the way the BFG talks is exceedactily what the English language needs!  More ways to describe the quirkifulous world we find ourselves muckdancipating around in! 

For clarity, I'll use a more standard repertoire, it was a fantastically busy and meaningful day!  Let me tell you about it. 

After four days of special drinks, walking, timing, trying to induce labor of one of the young women in the home (Rooted House) we supervise was told she needed a C-section because labor wasn't progressing. By 7:30am I was at the hospital holding her while she cried and praying with her.  Thankfully we have great staff who have been with her all day! 

I rushed home to have a retreat with the other ladies of Rooted House (they are 13 in total), and got pictures by 9am from the staff in the hospital of the most beautiful baby girl! 

By 10:30 the retreat was in full swing, though they were all eager to see their new house member so after worship we headed over to see the baby sucking happily and the sweet teen mom in good health. 

The retreat focused on making wise choices, using examples of individuals in the Bible.  Three lovely ladies watched the residents' babies and one dear sister made us cinnamon rolls for tea time and ramen noodles for lunch.  Dear friends stopped in to talk about social media use (he's written a book on the subject), share their love story, which mirrors God's design for committed relationships, and give insight into how to see ourselves as God sees us. 

The beautiful ending to the retreat was a dance class led by our friend Dala.  To see 10 young men (from Zach's Bible study) doing the salsa, waltz and swing with the 13 residents of the Rooted House warms my heart so! Not to mention that I get to do the demonstrations and see them excitedly building their dancing toolbox fills me with such joy! 

On the way back to my house for the weekly Bible study I'm doing with Zach's guys, some of our staff were coming home from a training on how to do children's ministry well. We designed this course together with our staff.  I asked, "How did it go?" And one of the participants said with a big smile, "It was powerful, excellent, and fun!"  So deeply thankful for individuals who have owned the vision of children's ministry and can competently teach others. 

The ladies left to get home before dark and I continued the Bible study with the young men, discussing marriage, romance, sex, and dating from the video series "Loveology" by John Mark Comer.  Such good stuff! They handled the delicate topic of the night with much maturity and clicks of their tongues as we discovered how God's design and thoughts on sexuality is so much sweeter than the world's! 

Then a birthday celebration with a friend and colleague who is the acting director while Zach is gone provided such encouraging fellowship. 

The day was topped off by watching one of my favorite films "A Knights Tale" with Daso and our permanent house guest Emmanuella who had to return home yesterday after her boarding school sent all the kids home due to a statewide closure of all schools for safety until further notice.

I also made homemade chai tea, since we can get all the spices here to do that.  It was just a warm happy on top of a really spectaculous day.  Indeed a smashing fullabulent day! 

No Idea

'All this for me?' -Blessing

 

"She is crying because we are walking on the other side of the tennis court, feeling she's being left behind. She has no idea that in a weeks time, Mommy will stay while the rest of us go.  I wonder how often we're like that with God, crying that things just don't feel right when he's there and will remain with us.  We have no idea of his deep love."  -Zach while we did our daily morning walk on the tennis court (Blessing often joins us). 

Now that week has passed.  Me (Christy), Daso, and Blessing returned from watching our four sisters and Zach scan their boarding passes.  It was teary, but they were brave and excited to see loved ones on the other end of the long journey.  The heartbreaking cries that lasted all the way to the hotel and intermitently all night long from Blessing weigh on me, but I know that we are all doing our very best to let this sweet person know she is secure in our love and, most importantly, in God's love for her. 

How often do we underestimate the sacrifice of Christ, the great length he went to be sure we could know his embrace in this broken world? How often do I cry from my side of the "tennis court", "Where are you, God?" when he is not only close by, hearing my desperate cries, but also planning something that will draw me closer to the fullness of life he has in store for me?  

 “So don’t worry about these things, saying, ‘What will we eat? What will we drink? What will we wear?’ These things dominate the thoughts of unbelievers, but your heavenly Father already knows all your needs. Seek the Kingdom of God[e] above all else, and live righteously, and he will give you everything you need. (Matt.6:32-33)

Please do pray for us during this time of physically distant (in 5 weeks Zach will return and shortly after Christy will go to meet the girls), that every one of us will know our Father knows our needs and he is trustworthy.