Reading Material

Sorry if that last post was a trifle petulant. I was feeling lonely after seeing everyone on Saturday.

I'm currently reading In the Presence of My Enemies by Gracia Burnham. You may remember her as the New Tribes Missions worker who, along with her husband Martin, was abducted by the Abu Sayyaf (Muslim paramilitary group) in the Philippines in 2001.

This is a powerful book, and a should-read if not a must-read for Christians. It is increasing my faith and my confidence in a powerful God. To read of the trials they endured, the provision of God during their year of captivity, and their unwavering (except for one dark moment) faith, is encouraging and uplifting. It also confirms my belief that God is sovereign and purposes to do things in our lives that we may not appreciate at the time in order to stretch and grow us, and to reach others with the gospel. In their case, that even involved Martin losing his physical earthly life (but oh, what he gained!)

I haven't quite finished the book; I'll post a final review when I'm done.

Anybody out there?

I was nagged about posting on my blog, and now that I have I expect some sort of response. Half the fun of writing is to see what other people think of it. Feel free to praise, criticize, or just be indifferent, but PLEASE let me know you are there.

God's Blessings

Yesterday our family returned to our most recent home town and met with our home church. For me it was a bittersweet time. I miss my sisters and brothers there so much. When we are back with them it's as though we never left. God has blessed us so richly with that group of friends who are willing to "hold the rope" for us as we venture out into the world. During our training here, one of the presenters said that two Christians can become better friends in five minutes than two non-Christians can in five days. This is something that my friend Alan has addressed at length in his posts on κοινωνία here. This feeling of fellowship and unity is such an amazing gift that God has given us as His children. Since we are adopted by God as sons, we are truly related to one another! This explains why it is so hard to say goodbye. It's as hard as parting from family, because we are family. That explains why my heart is so heavy within me today, and why I feel as though something is missing in my life--I miss my Messiah friends.

On a happy note, we got to see two beautiful babies who had been born since we left, and we were able to rejoice with two couples who are each expecting their first child. We praise the Lord for these gifts to our brothers and sisters in Christ. We will be thrilled to meet many new children when we return in a few years.

This post is making me sad. More posting later.

So Many Thoughts, So Little TIme

I chatted yesterday with fellow blogger Theron about my frustration with not having time to post on this blog. If things go much longer this way I may have to give up the blog entirely. I have so many things floating around inside my head, brewing and boiling, and yet rarely have time to sit down and write about them. Even now, as I'm writing this, there are other more pressing responsibilities that I'm ignoring. If I don't blog, I feel guilty, and if I do blog, I feel guilty. It's time to go somewhere and indulge in a primal scream.