Brian celebrated 32 years this year. He has been with me for almost 9 of those and it is such a pleasure to spend my every day with him. I love him more and more every day. He is a man of integrity who passionately loves God and the Gospel. He obeys daily with reckless abandon. He loves hard and strong. He is loyal, faithful, diligent (SO diligent), trustworthy, kind, funny, serious, talented in so many ways, stronger than I can ever hope to be, full of wisdom and the knowledge of God's Word, brilliant, patient (you would have to be to live with me), and an AMAZING daddy. I could go on and on.
Kate wanted to draw our whole family on the cake and write "Happy Birthday! Your family loves you."
As you can see, we ran out of room. Bless. At least it tasted good.
That girl LOVES her daddy! She told me, "Daddy is the greatest because he plays with me and colors with me and he is funny."
Thomas loves his daddy too, but nothing gets between him and cake. :)
Friday night, I had planned a surprise party for him at our coffee house. Ginna and Hannah helped me pull it off. I really couldn't have done it without them. A ton of Brian's friends came, and I think Brian had a blast and felt loved.
It was so fun, and he says he had NO idea. YAY!
Everyone singing Happy Birthday to Brian. He was bummed that he didn't dress better. Ha.
Thomas did a little Macedonian Oro for his daddy.
Brian, we love you so much and we are so grateful for you!!!!
Kate just got a special little package all her own from a little girl about her same. The little girl is a GA from Waxahachie, Texas, and she and her class of GAs decided to love on girls like Kate from across the world. She made a beautiful little bracelet for Kate, wrote her a letter and drew her a beautiful picture. What a special gift of love to our sweet Kate! Thank you for loving on our baby girl! She is thrilled!
When we get packages from the states, it's like Christmas all over again. The kids get so excited to pull the little slip of paper out of our tiny little mail slot in our building that says, "You have a package." We are so grateful to those of you who have recently sent us a package.
A very special group of people from Georgia sent us a wonderful package with some yummies, a tumbler just for me (It had an "M" on it, and I LOVE it), and some special little things for the kiddos. Thanks guys!
Another group of people, whom we have never even met before packed up a great box full of American chocolate, stuffed animals and other toys for our babies, and other goodies for us. They shipped it all the way from Lake Mead Baptist Church in Nevada. WOW! We are still enjoying the chocolate and the kids love their goodies. Blessings!
Our parents are all the time throwing money at the post office workers and confusing the new employees when they say they want to mail a package to Macedonia (most people don't know where that is). We are so grateful for all the fun little thoughtful things we find in those.
Those precious Dovers even packed up a couple of boxes of fun things for us and the kids. LOVE!
Another group of precious people from Philadelphia Baptist Church in Connelleys Springs, NC sent us 4 boxes, that's right FOUR boxes of goodies (most of which are not on my diet, but I have decided that American calories don't count over here). PEANUT BUTTER, giant jars of peanut butter, and gold fish, and mixes and cookie dough bites and on and on and on... What a tremendous blessing!
It is more than a box of goodies from home. It is the reminder that even though we are far far away and can sometimes feel very disconnected from a body of believers, we are remembered. People do care. People are thinking about us and praying for us. It is not fun to feel forgotten. It is tremendous to know you are both remembered and loved by people you know and also by some you have never even met. Have I ever mentioned how much I LOVE the Body of Christ?! Thank you all for blessing our hearts and the hearts of our kids by taking some time, spending some (ok, a lot of) money just to say "We care and we've got your back." We are so beyond grateful!
Winter time is rough when it comes to finding yummy produce. We have a pretty good selection of mandarins this time of year and when you can get over 2lbs for less than a dollar who can complain. But even the sweet delicious mandarin season comes and goes quickly. Apples come and go. Kiwis come and go, and the selection of veggies is even slimmer. However the one thing you can always find through the whole winter is cabbage. It is the one thing you will find on almost every person's table every single day. Cabbage will show out in any way possible. Sometimes it is smothered in oil and vinegar and mass amounts of salt and served as a salad, other times it is brined and then wrapped around meat and rice (sarma), and then others it is cut up and thrown into something like a casserole. I have grown to love cabbage since I have been here. I eat it in all of those ways and sometimes I saute it in a little soy sauce and serve with rice. Delicious!!! And cabbage salad with some apples thrown in is really yummy too. Good thing cabbage is full of nutrients and my kids love it.
Another thing that is common on the Macedonian's table is white beans. I have only ever had white beans fixed one way here. They call it "Tavche Gravche" and it is delicious. They boil the beans and once they are soft, they put in all of the seasonings, throw them in a ceramic casserole dish, put some sausage (if they have any) on top and bake it until it is all bubbly. It really is good. Gravche is something I have started making at home as my man and my babies seem to really like it. Plus it is super cheap. You can see my gravche pictured below, and you can find a recipe for making your own here.
So make some cabbage salad and tavche gravche and pray that the Macedonian people will know their Provider as Savior and Lord.
It is COLD. The Macedonians would say, "It's rock outside." They mean it's so cold you could freeze into a rock... I guess. The temps the last few days haven't gotten out of the 20s. I think tomorrow we are supposed to be above freezing. The last time this happened, it felt like spring. So I am super excited!
Every Thursday night Brian heads out to the coffee house and leads a Bible Discussion. We have about 6 regulars (all guys) who come and discuss different topical things from the Word. It almost always ends with Brian coming home on cloud 9--one step closer to people "getting it." I love that! However, Thursday nights tend to be a night in the week where I feel like I am going to lose my mind, another night in the house alone... well, with the two wee ones, but a lot of nights I feel all alone... no. adult. conversation. I realize this is spiritual warfare. I realize it is ridiculous. Brian is off doing amazing things: sitting with men--men who don't know their savior--with Bibles in their laps, sharing the Truth. That is incredible and I should be home fulfilling my role with joy so that he can fulfill his. And so I resolved, by HIS grace, to fight back, to chose joy, to give my kids the night of their lives.
Brian took the kids out to play in the snow right before he got ready to head out at 5. While he was out I got busy cutting out hearts and then making homemade AMAZING hot chocolate. We saw Brian off and then sat down and enjoyed our "pretty mugs"(as Kate says) of yumminess.
After hot chocolate, we painted hearts, lots of hearts, and while we painted we talked about the love of God. We talked about how much He loves us and how He has shown us His love. It was precious. (Sidenote: I love the faith of a child. I have much to learn from my kids about simple faith.) While I got dinner ready, I sent Kate and Thomas on a scavenger hunt. Thomas got bored and ended up playing with cars, but Kate had a blast running around trying to find all of the things on her list.
After dinner, we cleaned up the dishes and all of the toys and then.... we had a SOCKBALL Fight! It was SO. MUCH. FUN. I had both of the kids get out 5 pairs of socks, we balled them up, divided them up, took our marks and it was on. We laughed and squealed and chased one another and tackled one another and, it was great! Sock ball fights may be more fun than snow ball fights. I can't wait to do it again. After we cooled down from that, we got in to jammies, brushed teeth, read books, read the Bible and prayed. Kate thanked Jesus for dying for her sins for the first time. Awesome.
My kids are hysterical. They are amazing little people with such great personalities and I love spending time with them. I am so grateful for the privilege I have to invest in their lives. I am grateful for my role as momma and "housewife." I am grateful that very soon I will get to hear all the great details of Brian's night. The Gospel was shared at the coffee house and here at home. In Your Face 'Thursday night loneliness!'
I have one incredible husband and two amazing babies. They made my birthday so very special! With Brian's help, Kate and Thomas decorated my birthday cake, and the design was all Kate's idea.
It's Kate, Mommy and Thomas in a field of grass with purple flowers. So precious.
When I woke up they had made me a HUGE breakfast and after breakfast they sang me a few songs. So sweet.
As I look toward the year ahead (the last one in my twenties), I can't help but look back. The last year, I feel like the Lord has been teaching me a new lesson about fear. Fear is a thing with which I struggle. Fear, worry, anxiety, 'concern'-- call it what you will--it is the worst of my enemies. I know. There is scripture after scripture about fear. "Do not fear" appears more than any other phrase in the Bible, and I know that. I know it's irrational to worry about things that may or may not happen, but I constantly catch myself having to take thoughts captive to obey Christ (2 Co. 10:5). I worry or fear things ranging from my kids getting sick and not being able to get them to a good doctor in time to whether or not people are pleased with me (Gal. 1:10). It's ridiculous really. In His sovereign precious grace, my loving Father has taught me two key things about fear this past year from his Word.
1. Fear begins with forgetfulness. When we forget that Our God is the God of all gods, when we forget that He created us and all we see around us, when we forget that He sustains us and by Him all things hold together, when we forget that He is good and wise and kind and compassionate, when we forget that He sent His Son, Jesus Christ, to call us out of darkness and save our lives from death, when we forget how much He loves us, that's when fear starts to set in. I so often forget all that the Lord has brought me through. He has brought me through minimal things (that seemed huge at the moment) and huge things that I look back and say, 'whoa, I probably should have made a bigger deal out of that--2 open heart surgeries, for instance. I have heard a doctor say, "It's a miracle you are alive young lady." And I rested in the fact that I know personally the Maker of Miracles. I have seen Him take care of my daily needs and the daily needs of my children. I have watched as He has taken care of my friends and family in amazing, miraculous ways. I have watched as He has made people His children whom I thought would never ever come to know Him. And yet, sometimes I still forget. I forget He sustained me in a time in my life when I literally should have died. I forget He went to great lengths--death--to save my life for all eternity. He is my salvation, what have I to fear?!
Over the past year, I have worked my way through 1 and 2 Samuel, 1 and 2 Kings, Nehemiah, Ezra, Haggai, Zephaniah, Zechariah, and Exodus and almost every time you see the Israelites get ready to do something stupid (like build an altar to a man-made god), there it is is, the word "fear," and often times the word "forget" is close by.
"You shall not fear other gods and you shall not forget the covenant I have made with you... but you shall fear the Lord your God and HE will deliver you out of the hand of all of your enemies." 2 Kings 17:37b-39
Forgetfulness leads to fear which leads to idolatry and/or other sins.
"Fear not, stand firm and see the salvation of the Lord, which He will work for you today. He will fight for you today. You have only to be silent." Exodus 14:13-14
2. Love and Fear cannot coexist. The second key thing I feel like He taught me about fear this year is that where there is love, perfect love, there can be no fear. The two things cannot coexist.
"Perfect love casts out fear." 1 John 4:18
When I am resting in Him, abiding in Him, remaining in Him, there can be no fear. He is love--perfect love (1 John 4:7). This is huge! My tremendous (though imperfect) love for my children makes them feel safe. When they are scared at night and need me to lay in bed with them for a while or end up crawling in bed with me, they no longer fear anything. They are beside mommy and daddy the ones they know love them and protect them day in and day out. They only need to be near us and there is immediate rest. How much more does God love us?! When we crawl up next to Him, there can be no fear. In that place, in His presence, there is rest, joy, peace, comfort, LOVE. There is no room for fear of man or fear of pain or fear of sicknesses. He casts out all my fear when I chose to abide in Him.
"As the Father has loved me, so I have loved you. Abide in my love.... These things I have spoken to you that my joy may be in you and that your joy may be full." John 15:9 & 11.
Ah! I LOVE the Word of God. I love my Father, the Great I Am. I am so grateful for what He taught me last year, and I look forward to not only living the truths of His word and letting His perfect love cast out my fear, but I also look forward to building on what He has taught me. And so for this year, I am resting, O Father, in you.
Ginna used her Wednesday afternoons every week from October to lead an English Children's Story Hour. We had a little party for the kids the week before Christmas. We told them the Christmas story, and painted and decorated sugar cookies.
Yum!
We will be starting this back up in February. Kate is excited. She has missed her time with her "coffee house friends."
Other than the Grand Creator of the Universe himself, my favorite artist stands about 3 feet tall, has white blonde hair, and has a way with a crayon that can out-do any one of her temporaries.
"Kate and Daddy."
"Daddy" is the short stocky one with the purple ears. LOVE!
It's a "Bee Boat," of course.
"It's a boat with guys sitting on it. The guys names are Telly and Elley."
It's "Mommy's Submarine."
What a mommy always dreams of--her own submarine!!!
Evidently she has a thing for watercraft and of course, her daddy. So proud.
Russian Salad is one of the many things that are sitting on a coffee table when you go over to someone's home for the holidays. Russian salad is a super yummy mayonaisey salad that I personally love. I was asked to make some for a get together with the church here. I documented a little bit of the process:
I said a little of the process...
Here is a recipe if you are interested:
1/2 lb. chopped ham
1/2 lb. chopped cheddar cheese
1-2 bags of frozen mixed veggies including peas, carrots, and potatoes
chopped boiled eggs (optional)
6-7 chopped dill pickles
a little pickle juice
mayonnaise to coat everything
mustard to taste (optional)
1 tsp. dried dill (optional)
salt and pepper to taste
Mix everything together. Chill for 1-2 hours and serve.
An interesting fact: Russians don't actually call this salad Russian salad. Only people living outside of Russia call it that. Either way, it's yummy. Use it in place of your potato salad and pray for the people of Macedonia.
The month of January is notorious for leading me to believe that there will be low-key relaxing days in its calendar: days that start late and end early, days that may be white involving snow-cream, snow men and snow angels, days that call for big puffy blankets and pillows, story books and hot chocolate, cozy, bundled, warm, bliss. However, those glorious days of January do not exist in Macedonia (or probably anywhere except in my dreams). With New Years, Macedonian (Orthodox) Christmas (January 7th), Old New Year (January 13, 14) and Vodici (John the Baptist Day, January 19) this last month has been CRAZY busy. And what do holidays in Macedonia mean? They mean a visit to EVERYone you know. We started off in full swing with New Year's.
I mentioned in a earlier post that we were still waiting on Santa to come Makedonski style. And what do kids in Macedonia get for New Years???
These pretty little packets are Santa's gift of choice here. And Dedo Mraz (Grandfather Ice, aka Santa) isn't the only one to bring these goodie bags to the foot of your decorative tree. Everyone else that darkens your door during this season also comes armed with a bag for each of your children. So we ended up getting about 30 bags. And what is so great about these New Year's bags???
They are full of all the junk a child could ever dream of---chocolate bars, chocolate eggs, candy bars, cookies of many different varieties, juice boxes, pretzels, Flips (which are like peanut butter flavored cheetos), individually wrapped cakes, sesame sticks, candy and balloons And that is just one bag. So needless to say, our pantry overflows with Balkan junk food.
For New Year's Day we had our normal church time with a big fun lunch afterwards. After church, we ate, sat around and sang songs, ate some more and talked more about the Bible. I love our small group!
So fun!
Every holiday in Macedonia goes on for three days which means you have three days to visit people. So for three days after New Years we went all over town visiting friends just to say, "Srekna Nova Godina" or as we say in America "Happy New Year!" Then a few days later, on January 7th, we went all over town visiting all of our friends just to say, "Sreken Bozik" or Merry Christmas. Then we repeat the process for Old New Year and last but not least Vodici. And while we love going to visit people, when you throw two kids who are without naps and adequate rest and who really just want to be in a place where they can run around like bangees, this time of year can be truly exhausting and stressful on the whole family.
We managed to find time and energy to take the kids out for a walk around town to see the Christmas lights. They do a really good job of decorating the center with lots of lights. Kate and Thomas had a blast running around looking at all of it.
Choo! Choo!
Our version of Rockefeller Center.
My engineer husband thought this was incredibly interesting wiring set-up to have in the open where kids run around. I don't know why, but this is for those of you who think like him.
So the holiday craziness is finally nearing an end. We had a blast gathering around people's dinner tables and coffee tables for traditional Macedonian yummies, and perhaps my dreams for a cozy relaxing January will come true in the next week.
Oh Lord, I am not ready inside or out. I am a mess. But you, O God, you are ready. You came for me and my mess, and I am full of thanks.
"And I remember that never, not once, was I really as ready as I wanted to be. And I remember that God kept all His promises,every last one, in His perfect time. This new season looms and I don’t know what is next. But He doesn’t need me to be ready for this season because He is ready.He just needs me to be clinging to His feet.Now, God’s perfect time." --Katie
This weekend, our region, all of Europe--from England and France to Far-East Russia, will be moving into a more focused time of prayer and fasting for the salvation of the people around us. Please join us in praying and even fasting for the lost in this part of the world.
Pray for us especially as we look toward some big steps with our small group Bible study. Pray for those involved to continue to grow in the Lord, take some leadership roles, find jobs here in Ohrid to support their families and to be bold witnesses to their friends, neighbors and extended family.
Pray also for many new people who are interested in and coming to Bible study outreaches that we are having. Pray that they will come to love the word of God, believe in its living Truth and be transformed by that very Truth.
For more requests and updates from around this part of the world, check this out. And here is a link to more info and prayer requests for this specific weekend.
"So many ask 'why is prayer necessary?' You may notsaythose words, but we are saying it with our lives. We ask that because we don't need prayer when we are watching tv or mindlessly surfing the internet...--when there is nothing at stake in your walk with Christ--when there is no risk--when it consists of a monotonous routine week in and week out. BUT when you risk everything to glorify Jesus, you need prayer. When we sacrifice job, career, reputation, family, EVERYthing to share the gospel day in and day out, we need prayer. When we enter into a battle we will need prayer."
