great is Thy faithfulness

My silence here at our blog has been only in order to quietly enjoy these last few days 

before Amy and Elise leave for college.

Tomorrow we'll load up their things and say goodbye to this sweet season of life,

beginning a new, very different chapter for all of us.

But we've been savoring this time,

so Tuesday we loaded up a borrowed truck (thank you, J and T!)

with borrowed bicycles (thank you, N and R!)

and headed for a day trip to one of our very favorite places, Jekyll Island.

 This quiet little island off the coast of Georgia is amazing in its diversity.

In our three-hour bike ride we enjoyed the rocky Driftwood Beach,

...the stately Historic District,

(yes, Joan, Spanish Moss drips elegantly on Jekyll, too!)

 ... mysterious marshes filled with marsh birds and zillions of dragonflies,

...sun speckled forest with shy deer, and sandy beaches rolling in dunes.

 It's a place full of wonderful memories for us5, so appropriate for this bittersweet time.

Recreating a favorite laugh from 2004 at J.I.

We're giving thanks for God's profound goodness over the years,

in all the diverse places and things He's brought us through as a family.

Barbara, Amy and Elise 10 years ago at Jekyll Island

Though it will be dreadfully painful to say goodbye to you, Elise and Amy,

as you leave gaping holes in our home,

we're grateful for the memories.

 

And we are tremendously excited for you, 

 delighted at the opportunities God will give to you,

and confident that our faithful God will go with you!

Great is Thy faithfulness, O God my Father;
There is no shadow of turning with Thee;
Thou changest not, Thy compassions, they fail not;
As Thou hast been, Thou forever will be.

Great is Thy faithfulness!
Great is Thy faithfulness!
Morning by morning new mercies I see.
All I have needed Thy hand hath provided;
Great is Thy faithfulness, Lord, unto me!

 excerpt from the hymn by Thomas O. Chisholm, 1923

 

a new nest

It's the season again to sell what we own...to take apart the twigs of our nest.  

Eager shoppers wait for our garage sale to begin!

These bits and pieces of furnishings and possessions were individually not of that much value, but they had been gathered over the past 5 years to compose our home, our family's haven. 

Amy prepares for the flood of customers

Since we will be moving on to another phase, a new position in a partner organization, we won't be returning here to Davao. So we laid all of these elements of home out to be gathered by others who came to pick up fragments that will be of use in their own homes and families.

While friends and strangers browsed and bought bits of our home, some commented that they had come to find mementos of us.  And as they left with this and that to feather their own nests, I realized that it's not the things I'll miss - it's these sweet people and the friendships we've grown.
 

Sweet friends come to shop and to visit

In a sense it's a sad thing to again have no home, to be reduced to the minimum, 

flying away to find a new spot, 

to build a new nest, create a new place for our family.  

The sale was almost like a party, friends staying for an hour or two to shop and talk and help one another!

 But I have a feeling it's also the very best place we could be.  

Purged of the clutter of these temporary possessions,
we have a new vantage from which we can look all the more eagerly
for the eternal home being prepared for us.

 As if that's not enough blessing, in God's comforting goodness,

He painted a picture this week right outside our kitchen window
of His perfect care for us.

An olive-backed sunbird

built her little nest

right here.

Just where I'd see it

and be reminded that it really doesn't take much to build a new home.

Only a little courage and time,
a few twigs and feathers,

all supplied by the One Who cares for me,
and filled with family and love and His nearness -
not one of which are lost in this move.

 And He said, 
“My presence will go with you, 
and I will give you rest.”
Exodus 33:14

Thanks so very much to all who have helped us, 

and prayed for us through these transitions.  

Please keep praying...

the transitions are challenging, 

and we treasure your intercessions.

♥ us5 

home for Christmas

"...in the Tropics you have sun strokes varied by thunderbolts. 

But all these you have on a broad and brutal scale, 

and you settle down into contentment or despair. "

~G.K. Chesterton

our thermometer as I opened the box of ornaments

It seems to me a serious incongruity - decorating for Christmas in 90 degree weather, with a grueling heat index of 107.  But without much climate change on this island, the decorating helps us to mark the passage of time, the movement from one season to another.  The cinnamon apple candles and poinsettia flowers somehow adjust our inner clocks, making us realize that it's really not still summertime, despite the perpetual summer weather.

And the Christmas traditions when far from our home country seem almost more important for our emotional well-being than they were in America.  So we turn on the fan and the Christmas music, and put up our little tree and hang the wreaths and sing "Let it Snow!" while drinking ice water to keep hydrated. 

The Nativity set is placed in its spot on the window sill, where the glaring morning sun bathes it in radiance.  And I smile to think that Christ came to this earth for men who live in every latitude, every climate.  The hope of the incarnation is not indelibly linked to our western traditions of snowy lawns glowing in Christmas lights, or cozy fires, or stockings on the mantle. 

So it's time for me to settle down into contentment; to celebrate in our tropical heat the gift Christ gave in leaving His home country to enter ours so that we can someday go Home for Christmas.

what a riot

With temperatures in the 90's through much of October,

and several recent downpours,

the view from our front window is a riot of color!

We often watch from our breakfast table 

the little Olive-backed sun birds

sipping refreshing nectar from these flowers

in the early morning hours.

Though we're yearning for some cool fall weather,

we're also giving thanks for the tropical brilliance;

the beauty of summer in autumn.

This is my Father's world,
the birds their carols raise,
the morning light, the lily white,
declare their Maker's praise.

This is my Father's world:
He shines in all that's fair;
in the rustling grass I hear Him pass; 
He speaks to me everywhere.
-Babcock

most wonderful time of the year

Believe it or not, it's that time of the year...

at least in the Philippines!

"Open a very happy Christmas" -translation by Elise, since I don't speak Tagalog!

With the 'ber' months comes a season of Christmas celebration;

carols are playing in the stores,

and our neighbors lit up their Christmas tree last night.

We heard them call out a "Merry Christmas" to others as they passed the house.

So, though we're more in the mood for autumn colors and pumpkin spice,

we'll join in and wish an advance Merry Christmas to each one of you!

summer means...#2

Summer means having the time to learn new things...

like Statistics through an online Udacity course,

with lots of data and laughing over the German Professor's accent!

Time to learn through good books as you 'read in' 

(as opposed to sleeping in!)

 Time to learn how to rescue friends' flood-water soaked photos...

 ...and new recipes to share with family and friends.

Time to learn some aeronautical engineering 

with early-morning R/C flights together,

and technical repairs to damaged air craft.

Time to learn some new photography techniques,

photo by Elise

and to self-teach new skills like oil painting.

To everything there is a season

and a time for every purpose under Heaven...

Ecclesiastes 3:1

summer means...#1

...time with friends to talk...

...play games...

“There is no surer foundation for a beautiful friendship

 than a mutual taste in literature.”
P.G. Wodehouse

...and just hang out!

“It is a curious thought, but it is only when you see people looking ridiculous 

that you realize just how much you love them. ”  

Agatha Christie

“We'll be Friends Forever, won't we, Pooh?' asked Piglet.
Even longer,' Pooh answered.”
A.A. Milne

He did good

“I'm so glad I live in a world where there are Octobers.”
― L.M. Montgomery, Anne of Green Gables

We woke this morning to chilly temperatures...

a reminder that autumn is truly here.

 It's our first real autumn in four years,

and the leaves, just beginning to change color,

look all the more vibrant;

pumpkins painted by Amy

 autumn crafts are all the more special,
warm sweaters are cozier,

 and autumn smells and tastes are that much more delicious

because we haven't enjoyed them for so long.

How thankful we are for this opportunity to experience all over again

this stunning idea of God's,

the change of seasons...

reminding us of His unchanging faithfulness

through the passage of time!

"...He did good by giving you rains from heaven and fruitful seasons, 

satisfying your hearts with food and gladness.” 

Acts 14:17