I can hardly believe that I let a whole month go by and didn't blog or update you at all....so I'll try to give you a quick "this is what is going on..." update!
We've been busy with school and co-op as I'm sure you all know; I'm teaching an Animal Kingdom and a Civil War class this semester at High Country, and there is definitely some prep work involved each week. This year has also been a bit of a transition with both boys doing school. Now that Gwangi is more streamlined into my schedule, Sissi has lost her playmate and that can make for some rough times as well. She has really been stepping up to the plate though, she loves to string beads and put stickers on paper and color and cut and paste for her school work. Her independence level has really been expanding as well. Krypto had his last football practice and game of the season last week as well, so that has lightened our load a bit ;).
On the missions application front, we have been told by the school in Tanzania that their hiring board has approved us, they are waiting on final approval from the Assemblies of God before officially offering us the position though...and quite honestly, that could take some time. The Assemblies Medical Co-ordinator has been out of the office and so they haven't really even started that part of the process. The background checks have been completed and we've been approved at the District level, so it's moving along, just a bit slower than we thought it might.
So, distractions....our pastor spoke on this topic last week, specifically about Nehemiah and the rebuilding of the wall in Jerusalem after the exile, and we've been having quite a few distractions lately while we've been trying to focus on "building our wall". There's been some family drama, as in some of our extended family not being overly thrilled with us going to Africa, and also in that they aren't getting along very well with each other. I'll be honest, my patience level with this kind of drama and self-centeredness is wearing thin. When you allow it to do so, it can consume you, and I believe it can make you physically ill (proof, my headache and stomachache for a day after some conversations with family members). Are we supposed to let other people's issues and concerns affect how we follow God's leading in our lives...I would say emphatically, NO! When there is a call, a definite leading from the Lord to do something, you are obligated to follow Him. What I find most frustrating of all though, is when these "distractions" are from fellow believers...those that I would expect to be our staunchest supporters. Our district pastor recommended we read a book, I've downloaded it to my Kindle PC app and have opened it several times, I need to get past the Table of Contents ;)....it's called "The Bait of Satan" and it deals with how the issue of offense can lead us astray in our walk with the Lord and can affect our ministry. I am sure that is what is going on here...we have a higher level of expectations out of fellow believers and when they let us down and cause us to be "distracted" from what we know we are supposed to be doing, our righteous indignation can quickly become offense and anger. I could really use some prayer and support in handling these situations in the light of the Lord.
On the home front, we have been busily canning apples and pears, cleaning up the yard for the winter, purging the house for our garage sale, planning a Reformation Day Party, putting in paperwork for next semester's classes at High Country, sewing shirts for the boys, working on scarves as gifts, catching up on scrapbooking, and just keeping up with school, laundry, and life. I do need to download some of the latest pictures and maybe I can do that in a separate blog entry. We love you all so much and are thrilled that you are keeping us, and our needs, in your prayers. God Bless you all, and I won't let another month go by without touching base, promise!
