2020

This month I completed a writing/editing project I have been working on about how to triumph when you are going through life's inevitable trials. Apparently saying "yes" to this project was akin to praying for patience: I was given plenty of opportunities to "practice". (If you've never prayed for patience before, do so carefully!) During this period of writing about how to triumph over trials, my ex-husband died. My mom got E.Coli ... twice. My husband took a staple-gun to the face. My step-daughter was in a car accident. My niece broke her wrist (on my watch, no less). My brother-in-law had a heart attack, followed by a stroke. My aunt injured her back. Another family member went into temporary foster care. Both our dogs have been sick. I ended up in the clinic after an encounter with a rusty nail. And those are just the trials in my immediate family that I know about! Sheesh! Would someone please pray that my next project is on prosperity?! Chan...

I didn't want Randy to be disappointed by not going to Lincoln, to visit his brother's birthplace, but as soon as he saw how close we were to the world's largest ball of twine, he quickly decided we should head south and see that instead. No sooner had we crossed the border into Kansas than we saw a sign for the Center of the United States. What???! We had already been to the Center... in South Dakota! Obviously we took the turn off and there it was -- a gorgeous little rest stop, with a tiny little chapel, marking the geologic center of the lower 48 states. This had been the center up until 1959 when Alaska and Hawaii were admitted into the U.S., and Kansas was proud of it! A short ways down the road from the Center, we came to the world's largest ball of twine. Call it cheesy if you want, but if you can't get excited about Americana and a tradition that brought a town together then you are going to miss out on so much fun! Van's favorite part of...

Our first adventure in Nebraska was to the Museum of the Fur Trade  in Chadron. The museum didn't look like much from the outside, but the artificats were incredible, spanning from furs to seeds to guns. Even their website is worth a visit! So well known and well researched is this place that they were called upon during the making of the movie Revenant (featuring Leonardo Dicaprio) to autheniticate every little detail. We ventured west from there (because why would we go east toward our final destination!) to another museum, but it was so hot that all we really wanted was an ice cold slushie. We stopped at the "Dairy Sweet" and had the best slushie of my life. You know how you usually run out of juice about halfway through? This one was blue raspberry all the way to the last slurp! AND the "barista" (what do you call someone who makes slushies???) convinced Van and me to add nerds to our drinks. Genius! So, so good. While we waited for our drink perfectio...

We spent our first week of this RV adventure in New Mexico, doing more preparation for travel than actual traveling. Mom last used the motor home in September/October of last year, as she moved from California to her home in New Mexico where she wanted to spend her final days.  Since the RV had been sitting for the better part of 6 months, we weren’t sure what we were getting into. But after initial inspection (plus removing the dryer sheets and ivory soap that were placed in every corner to prevent mice from chewing up any wires) everything seemed to be on the up and up. The front windshield was cracked and we had to jumpstart the battery every time we wanted to drive, but these seemed like issues we could deal with down the road The next agenda was to figure out licensing and registration. We plan to end up in Ohio eventually, so New Mexico gave us a “transit permit” to get us from here to there. (Of course we are taking much longer than the suggested 10 days to get...

I'm so excited that my brother and sister-in-law, Roy & Suzanne, are heading to Ecuador in April! I spent an incredible 10 days in Ecuador when I was in college and absolutely fell in love with the people, the scenery, standing on the equator and strolling through the neighborhood markets. I know they will have an even more rewarding experience, because they are getting to meet Emilia, the child they sponsor through Compassion International. Randy and I spent time in Oregon with Roy & Sue right before we moved to Mexico. During that time they loaned me their copy of "Too Small To Ignore," by Wess Strafford, founder of Compassion International. It wasn't the easiest book to read, because Strafford went through many challenges during his boyhood in Africa that were painful to recount, but it was an honest telling that showed why he felt such a conviction to start this organization. Compassion International has been endorsed by many organizations and...

Mercy Multipied. I'd never heard of this ministry before, but this week it's shown up in two different places. Coincidence? Or an invitation to learn about a new organization? Since I'm in full-on giving mode, I obviously saw this as the latter. So what have I learned about Mercy Multiplied? Mercy Multiplied is based in Nashville, Tennessee, and is celebrating its 35th year of operation in 2018. It's mission statement is this: Mercy Multiplied is a nonprofit Christian organization dedicated to helping young women break free from life-controlling behaviors and situations, including eating disorders, self-harm, drug and alcohol addictions, unplanned pregnancy, depression, sexual abuse, and sex trafficking. Mercy Multiplied has a 6-month residential program which is free for participants. Eligible women are aged 13-28. The program offers a holistic approach, seeking to heal body, mind, and spirit. They also offer outreach programs and resources to help families wh...

In 2008, just 6 months after having her first child, Katherine Wolf suffered from a nearly life-taking stroke due to a congenital defect she didn't know she had. The next 10 years have been a series of hurdles that Katherine and her husband Jay have had to overcome. But their faith has led them to say: "Maybe healing just looks different than we think it does." Katherine's facial features were permanently impacted and she has to use a wheelchair to get around. But what at the time was the worst hard time of their lives, they can now say has led to the role they were meant to play -- an inspiration to others with disabilities, both those which can be seen and those which cannot.  After speaking at a camp for people with disabilities, Katherine and Jay were inspired to start a camp of their own: Hope Heals Camp. Katherine writes: At first, I didn't want to be the "miracle girl in the wheelchair", but after years of ministering with all kinds of h...

Peter Benchley is the inspiration for today's donation. Who was Peter Benchley? Everyone knows him, even if they don't know his name. Peter Benchley was a speechwriter for President Lyndon Johnson. Peter Benchley was the first host of Shark Week. Peter Benchley wrote "Jaws". And Peter Benchley later became an advocate for environmental preservation, regretting the fact that he was famous for making one of God's creatures a villain rather than a victim. I just finished reading another of Peter Benchley's novels, " The Girl of the Sea of Cortez ." It's about a girl, Paloma, who lives in Baja, and whose father taught her to love the sea. After her father dies, Paloma struggles to fit in with her family, her community, society as a whole. While her mother would rather she help with housework, Paloma would rather go diving. While her brother sees fish as a means to a profit, Paloma sees them as an essential part of God's creation. Benchl...

Most mornings our children have a time of devotions before they eat breakfast. They like to sing songs, followed by a time of Bible reading, and then ending in prayer. Today Mama Imelda, our administrator, led devotions for the children. She titled the devotion: "The Heavy Backpack." The Scripture she used was Salmos 55:22, Echa sobre el SEÑOR tu carga, y El te sustentará; El nunca permitirá que el justo sea sacudido. Cast your cares on the LORD and he will sustain you; he will never let the righteous be shaken. -Psalm 55:22 Mama Imelda explained that when we try to carry all of our burdens ourselves, each burden is like adding another book to your backpack. The kids could relate to this because their backpacks are burdens! Any time I pick them up from school, one or more of them try to pawn their backpacks off on me to carry on our walk home. And I don't blame them! They weigh a ton! She explained that when something hurts our feelings, we have...