Jesus in Her Place

Our sweet girl made a huge decision over two years ago. She was young, to be sure. She's still young. But I have no doubt that she committed her life to Christ. She admitted that she was full of sin and that she needed a savior to restore her relationship to her Holy Creator. She believed on Jesus as the only one who could save her. She believed that His death on the cross was for her sins and that His resurrection gave her new life. She chose, on her own, to turn from her sin, and believe in Him as the one who took her death, took her place and made her alive. And for two years as we walked with her through scripture and as she read on her own, she asked to be baptized. Jesus says to be baptized. I need to do that. When can I do that? And since we believe one of the biggest lessons we need to teach and model to our children is obedience to God, we decided preventing her from being baptized because of her age would be wrong. So our little sister in Christ, who loves Jesus so much, made her faith public in front of our home church in Raleigh while we were stateside. She understood the symbol that baptism is. She understood that her old sinful man has been buried with Christ and the new creation has been raised with Him to new life, and she wanted to tell the world through the symbol of baptism. She knows baptism doesn't save her. She knows only Jesus is her salvation.

One of the pastors at our church asked her two questions: 1) Do you believe Jesus did everything needed to save you? 2) Are you willing to follow Him wherever He leads you? She answered a rousing yes! to both.

And so, Brian had the privilege of baptizing her.

Jesus in My Place. Jesus in Her Place. She is His, and He is hers.

My heart!

This girl, my precious baby, my sister in Christ. Her faith is young (though somedays stronger than mine), but she loves her Savior. She loves His Word and loves learning more about Him. She is learning to be obedient. As I read in a book one time, her faith is like a small sapling tree. The tree is real, alive, and has roots in the soil. But that tree needs to be tethered to a larger tree to be able to withstand the storms until it grows stronger and can stand on its own. This is raising our children in Christ. We don't doubt their faith or make them prove it. We tether them to ourselves, teach them, model Christ to them, hold them fast as they grow, point them to Jesus, and as their roots grow deeper in Him and as they bear more and more fruit, we can begin to let them grow on their own.

The following was the song playing in the background as she was baptized. It couldn't be more fitting.

"The Lamb of God in my place. Your blood poured out, my sin erased. It was my death you died. I am raised to life. Hallelujah! The Lamb of God."

We are rejoicing with our girl! We are praising our great God! 

Camp Cuteness

Days before we got on the plane to head to the states, we helped with an English Camp. Some of our dear friends and partners were hosting a volunteer team from the great state of Missouri, and we had the privilege of helping them love on these babies, teach them some English and teach them some stories from the Word.

I'm pretty sure these babies woke up every day, wallowed around in cuteness, and then came to the camp. I mean, would you look at those faces. I'm sure you can see a little mischief on those faces too and you would be right.

Tug-of-war was a favorite game.

Tug-of-war against the giant white men was the most favorite. They pulled with all their little might. 

Look at those little boogers jumping over the rope. Who knew a giant rope could be so much fun?! 

This little cutie was just a spectator. The chub!!! Too much!

Learning English at one station and a life changing story at another.  

Most of the kids that came to the camp also come every week to the after school kids' club. The three day camp ended with a gathering of the kids and their parents, a small carnival, a puppet show telling the story of the prodigal son and other things to show them love and share the good news. We had a blast and consider it such a tremendous privilege that we were able to help out with this. We are asking that the Father would continue to work in the lives of these precious children, their parents and their whole village.  We are asking that the small team still on the ground working in this village will be strengthened and encouraged in their work. We are asking that they will see fruit from their tireless labor. Will you join us in asking for that and thank Him for all that He has done already?

Day O' Fun Throwback

We've been out of Thailand for a couple of months, now, but I thought I'd share some pictures from one of our favorite family days back in September.

These two. Their brother was most likely swinging upside down from something while I took this. We found a little cafe with a giant, shaded playground. The kids played and jumped and swung. And I had coffee with my man. Happiness!

Actually, this little beauty was my sideline pleasure, and no, I will not share. 

Monkeying around. 

I'm pretty sure this is his inner self coming out. I think his heart and head make this face all the time. So. Much. Energy. He's all fun!!!

My sweet girl.

I LOVE this man!!! He amazes me every day. 

He's such an amazing daddy. I love watching him with his babies. They adore him. 

And they learn so much from him. He makes every moment teachable. 

We headed to a little zoo and tried to abide by the rules. 

That is one hungry giraffe. Kate and Thomas were a little nervous. Isaiah showed no fear, as usual.

Brian and Mr. Daddy Giraffe had a little heart to heart. Bless. Big guys and their big hearts. At one point, I do believe I heard Brian say, "I know how you feel, buddy." We regularly make him eat his dinner behind a wooden bar while taking pictures of other people feeding him.... Um, no...

We had a blast seeing more of the beautiful country and its beautiful wildlife. Family time is always sweet especially when I have an icey drink in my hand. :)

"Home"

Exhausted but excited. Worn out but wired. We were on American soil. We stepped out of the airport tram tired from 24 hours of travel, and as we walked into the domestic terminal where we would board our final flight "home," the smells and sights of our dear homeland hit me. "It smells like weight gain." I said to Kate. She didn't understand. Her metabolism still functions at a high level. But between the smells of cinnamon buns, doughnuts, cheeseburgers and, fried chicken, I could envision myself staring down the gauntlet of shopping for new jeans. But even that would be ok, because I was now in the land of clearance racks and bargain shopping.

I suppose I didn't know what to expect landing in our passport country. We've heard reports about so much hurt and fear from so many people. Our news websites keep us updated on the marches, the riots, the fighting over flags, the decreased moralism, the selling of babies' body parts, and the racism that was supposed to be extinct by now. And when all you hear is bad news, you set your expectations low. So many ask, "What is becoming of our country?" I guess I was asking it too. But upon arriving in Atlanta, I didn't see hate. I didn't see fear. Maybe my eyes were clouded because of the extreme exhaustion, but what I saw was the same America I have always known and loved.

I saw people helping one another get through the airport. I saw smiling faces and helping hands from all races. When we finally sat ourselves down on the plane for our final flight home, I saw two men jump up to help a woman, not from their race or background, put her luggage in the overhead compartment. I saw an older woman give her number to someone she saw carrying a sewing machine she had inherited from her dying grandmother. "Call me. My name is ... I will help you learn to sew. Really anytime day or night. Call." Perfect strangers making connections and forming community. Genuine smiles. Kind words and gentle helping hands. This is my country. These are my people. I am proud to be here and count myself among them.

I'm not always proud of us. We're a country full of imperfect people. We're broken and lost. And those of us who have the Truth can be so ridiculously self-righteous and so painfully unforgiving. We don't always listen and we don't always welcome the broken and hurting into the same sea of grace that we have been washed in. But the strong black hands that lifted a white woman's large suitcase above her head spoke that very thing. Grace. And it was beautiful and slightly reassuring. I do realize the darkness is still ruling and the pain and fear are still real, but in the nitty gritty moments (i.e. the airport, because... really) I saw a somewhat strangely united America that I don't even think I would have noticed last time I was here.

We are certainly happy to be here where customer service is an actual thing and where we can enjoy family, friends and even the genuine smiles and kindness of strangers. There's football, falling leaves, family and food! We're enjoying the beautiful rolling landscape of our gorgeous state. We are cherishing every solitary moment with family. And church. Man, I love going to church! Balm for my heart!

But most importantly, I'm not sweating. Hallelujah!

Name That Tune

These beautiful babies are learning a new song today. It's a sweet sweet sound.

Compassion on the Multitudes

Our family recently took a walk through a local, popular temple.

 Beautiful colors 

and large towering statues,

 people on their knees with hands bowed in prayers, the smells of incense, the sounds of ringing bells,

the food, flowers and money offered to idols, and the tables filled with lottery tickets for sell. 

The reality is a people who are grasping for something to hold, for someone to hear their prayers, for luck, for hope. 

And my heart is filled with compassion.... 

Super Six

Another week. Another birthday. That's how we roll in October. Our Thomas is now 6, and he couldn't be prouder. He woke up to balloons, streamers and of course, pancakes. This child has been waking up early since 2009. And he doesn't just wake up early. He wakes up like a jet engine ready to hit the day with full force. No waiting for coffee or breakfast. He's gonna rule the world one day, because the rest of the world will still be sleeping when he energetically takes it over. (As I write this he is doing burpees. Bless.)

My future pilot had is big 6 pancake.

His favorite man on the planet--the man who gets up with him every morning while I am still moaning about it being too early and praying coffee would magically appear by my bed. He is the mini version of his daddy in almost every way. Same face, eyes, smile, athleticism, drive, ambition, persistence, stubbornness.... The list could go on and on.

My boy. This kid melts me. With things like, "Mom, I'm gonna marry you," and "You're my favorite," and "You're beautiful,"as far as I'm concerned, he can have anything he wants. 

Best friends. They are so fun together. They couldn't be more different, but they love each other so much! (The two year old was being two and wouldn't even begin to think about being in a picture.)

We had Thomas's party at our house. Per his request, it was all things Mario Brothers. 

There were Mario and Luigi coloring sheets,

An awesome sign made just for him (thank you SE Asia),

Musical chairs with music from the game.  

He got a little into it!

I love this kid. He's most certainly got a lot of me in him too. You should see our wedding pictures. :)

Pin the mustache on Mario or Luigi.

And the obstacle course created and designed by his dad was a major hit. There were coins, piranha plants, ghosts, and goombas for smashing. 

They had to jump over the ghosts, hit the coins, jump on the goombas, throw fire and ice power through holes in the enemy and rescue the princess.

So. Much. Fun.

Throwing fire power.

Rescue the princess! 

The food. Marshmallows for ice power, cheese balls for fire power, and star cookies. Pinteresting, right? I couldn't have pulled this party off without those awesome mommas who pin all their brilliant ideas. 

The cake. I didn't make his cake this year. I only slightly missed making it. Cakes stress me out. I always love the finished product, but it's a lot of work. The place that made his did a great job and it was super yummy!

I LOVE these people!

Cutie! He always blushes when we sing to him. 

With all his might...

We even had mustaches. Thomas wouldn't wear his, but this kid loved it. So cute.

And great gifts from great friends. What a precious group of people the Lord has put in our lives here. He is so good!

Thomas Andrew, We love you so much and we are so proud of the little man you are growing into. You are so fun, smart, kind and compassionate. You are a truth-telling, call-it-like-you-see-it, energetic, ambitious and persistent little guy who ALWAYS keeps us on our toes. We thank our great God for you, His creation. You are His. We pray that you will continue to grow in your knowledge of Him and that He will get ahold of your heart. We pray that you surrender your whole life to him, and that all of your ambition and persistence will be founded in Christ. We pray that you will be a man of integrity and godly character, that you will be bold, and obedient to Him. We love you our sweet Bubba Boo. Happy 6th!