Losing It

Ministry Update

We are at one of my favorite places in which to preach: Grace Baptist Church in Semmes, AL just outside of Mobile. The Lord is giving us another wonderful meeting this week. Although we have not yet seen anyone saved, the Lord has done a work so far among God’s people. Preaching the Pastor’s fellowship this morning was a great joy and many of the men expressed to me how the Holy Spirit had encouraged their hearts. Our meeting goes through Friday after which we head back home for less than a week.

Family Update

Well, this week has been quite interesting so far. I already mentioned that I lost my keys, but that is not all I lost. I also lost my watch – the clasp must have come undone when I was out somewhere. I lost my phone (while it was set on vibrate, of course) and found it the next day. Then, the ultimate was this morning when I lost my balance and fell off the platform at the preacher’s fellowship. My heel caught on the edge of the carpeted step and I only had time to think, “Uh-oh! I am going to fall!” Whump! There I was on hands and knees in front of the altar. (Paul has been hoping for this for quite some time, but I don’t know if that is exactly the way he thought it would happen!) Someone helped me up, and I fled the auditorium, trying to conceal my laughter. When I had regained my composure, I came back inside for the sermon. Everyone was very concerned about me, although the only damage I suffered was rug-burned knees. Several people tried to make me feel better by telling me how many times they had “almost done that very same thing” a dozen times or more. Others told me how graceful my landing had been. Yeah, right! “What a klutz – but, boy, what a great landing! Didn’t even scream! I give her about a seven on that one. Har! Har!” The worst thing of all was that my heel separated from my shoe. I guess I will just have to get another pair! Oh, well!

After the preaching, there was a meal, and we all sat around talking for quite some time. Most of the people were gone when I heard the very distinct sound of a mousetrap disengaging in the church kitchen. I looked around, and Esther was nowhere to be seen. I heard no screams, so I assumed that either she hadn’t been hurt, or her lips were snapped together and she couldn’t cry. She was quite upset when I took the trap away from her. It seems that it had been baited with Twix candy bar, and she found that very tasty. I felt a great compunction to scrub her mouth and face with Comet or something very strong, but in the end, I only used soap and water. Hopefully, the trap hadn’t been used very much previously. I will have to keep an eye on her though, because she might just think that a mousetrap is the means of a quick and easy snack. Next time, it might not be such a happy ending!

Last Saturday, I found a tick embedded in Abigail’s head. It was a traumatic experience for all involved. Try telling a three-year-old who hates bugs with a passion that there is a bug biting her on the head and you have to get it off right now. Later that evening, I was looking at the site of the tick bite when I noticed something else much worse. Her hair was full of….well, I won’t say what. Some of you may get the creepy-crawlies if I mention it. This new development, combined with the hours-earlier tick incident, served to give me the most horrible sensations I have had in ten years. Paul was sent to Wal-mart post-haste to get shampoo, and I began the tedious process of combing out her hair. This also necessitated my finding someone to comb through my hair, just in case. Thankfully, nothing was found in my hair, and Abigail is now clean. Loads of laundry and bedding were immediately dispatched to the 24-hour Laundromat, only to find that it had closed at 10 PM due to recent vandalism. What are the chances? All is back to normal, except that at any hour of the day, I can be seen looking furtively at my daughter’s head, hoping to see only what is supposed to be there. Where did she get it? We have no idea, and I really don’t think I want to know. Life is full of surprises! Maybe she got it from YOU!

Lost and Found

Ministry Update

Cleaning wooden decks, spraying poison ivy, shooting varmints, spring cleaning a travel trailer, cutting grass – what do these sound like to you? To us, these activities mean vacation. We spent the last week at the farm enjoying a week of physical labor that turned out to be very relaxing for me. We are also in the process of preparing our trailer to sell. We don’t yet have a buyer, but we are praying and trusting and anticipating that God will soon supply the buyer that we need.

Our next meeting is Friday of this week in lower AL. I will be preaching a Friday graduation ceremony and then be preaching a Sunday through Friday revival meeting in the church. After that, we will be home in NC for a little less than a week before we hit the road again.

Family Update

Life has been rather “normal” lately – that is to say, nothing unusual has happened. We had a week off and spent it at the family farm in Indiana. The kids had a blast playing outside, riding the tractor, playing in the house and in the barns. It was enjoyable for all of us. Josiah and Paul were both able to fly a kite for the first time. (I almost fell over when Paul told me he had never flown a kite before!) Josiah was content to sit outside and hold the kite string “until lunch,” he told me. After warning him of the dangers of power lines, trees, buildings, and letting go of the string, I went in the house to do some work. Some time later, Paul and I heard an awful screech, and very loud crying. “He lost his kite,” I said. Sure enough, when I went outside, Josiah was running across the lawn, tears pouring down his face, still wailing. Off in the distance, I could see the kite, making its way across the fields. I tried in vain to calm Josiah, who was nearly in hysterics (ever see those scenes in a movie where the hysterical person gets their face slapped by the person trying to talk to them?). I did not have to resort to such drastic tactics, I am glad to say, but I was thinking about it, at least! Paul ran after the kite, and barely rescued it from certain destruction as it landed just behind the farmer plowing in the next field. It turns out that one of his sisters, when allowed to fly the kite, had let it go intentionally rather than give it back to him. I know you cannot imagine either of our two daughters doing such a thing, so to protect the guilty one, we will not mention any names.

While in town one day, we had to go to Lowe’s (or Slowe’s, as I always call it) and pick out some paint samples. You know, the little cards with all the different colors of paint. Josiah and Abigail both wanted one, so I, out of a need to keep my sanity, gave them each a card. All the way home, Josiah quizzed me about the paint sample. I thought his interest was unusually strong, but tried to explain what the sample was. After we got back to the farm, the kids ran off to play, and I was busy downstairs. Josiah came back down with a rather disappointed look on his face and told me that his paint card didn’t work. “What do you mean, it doesn’t work?” I asked. “Well,” he said, “I put it on the wall, but it didn’t change the color. It didn’t even stick!” I was quite amused and realized why he had been so interested in the paint samples. He thought that just by placing it on the wall, you could change the color of the wall. Now that would be an invention, to be sure! Thankfully, it didn’t work that way, or the whole upstairs would be a bright cobalt blue!

I am also glad to announce that the first year of Cross Country Baptist Academy is finished. Both student and teacher are enjoying summer vacation. Josiah has learned a whole lot this year. He can add up to ten (most of the time), subtract one, count to one hundred, tell time to the hour, half hour, and quarter after, read a calendar, read books, and he has also learned the pledges (American & Christian flags and the Bible). He has learned a Bible verse for every letter of the alphabet, as well as several longer passages, and has learned the first verse to about twenty familiar hymns. I really hope he won’t forget everything over the vacation. If you hear that I have been committed to an insane asylum next fall, you can assume that Josiah’s lack of memory was the cause.

Today I lost my keys. I did not realize they were missing until we stopped for fuel and took the kids to the bathroom about two hours down the road. I remembered locking the trailer before we left, so I knew that they weren’t inside it, but I could not imagine where I had put them. I usually put them directly into my purse, but they weren’t there, either. I thought I remembered putting them on the arm rest of the truck as I strapped Abigail into her car seat, but they were not there, nor were they on the floor of the truck. I was baffled as well as frustrated. Although he did not say so, I wondered if Paul was secretly laughing at my misfortune, seeing as how he is usually the one to misplace his keys. I take great pride in always knowing where my belongings are at all times (well, at least the important ones) and rib him to no end when he loses something. As it turned out, he was once again the perfect husband and was only helpful in my time of need. Of course, it would happen that I would lose my keys when we have to be on the other end of the nation in two days. We called a friend to check the driveway of the farm, and we proceeded to tear the truck apart. I found Sunday school papers, sunglasses, books, toys, some dirt, shredded Kleenex, and even a check from last year, but no keys. The keys, our friends reported, were not at the farm. Rats. We stopped at a church and set up for the night. Paul began thoroughly cleaning out the truck, while I went into the house. It was then that I remembered where I put the keys. When we stopped at the gas station, I was awakened from a shallow sleep and took Abigail into the house to use the bathroom (and, yes, the potty training is still a dismal failure). In my after-nap stupor, I took my keys into the trailer, although Paul had already unlocked the door. When we went into the bathroom, I placed them on the window sill, hence the vague memory of setting them on a ledge. It wasn’t until I got back into the truck that I realized they were gone. So, praise the Lord, I found them and they weren’t hours behind us or in the hands of some irresponsible vagrant. No comments, please. Ha!

Southward Bound

This update was composed on May 8, but we have had very limited access to the Internet. Sorry it is only now being posted.

Ministry Update

The last four weeks of meetings have been sweet for us. The Lord allowed us to see several people saved during this time. Some have walked the aisle at the old-fashioned invitation, while others have trusted Christ in their homes after the services. We are so grateful for God’s work. Minnesota has been good, with a very sweet, apolitical preacher’s meeting last week. We finish out in Duluth before heading south again.

Family Update

The last several weeks have been busy with meetings and other important events. Abigail is pleased to announce that she is now “fwee.” We had a party with cake that everyone could eat (that is cause to celebrate in itself) and lots of balloons and streamers. It was much anticipated by the whole family, and enjoyed by all as well.

Esther is now the proud owner of two more brand new teeth. They are still invisible to most people, but they are there, nonetheless. She has also begun crawling – look out, world. She isn’t very good at it yet, but I know that it won’t be long before she is into everything and under my feet all the time! If I try to get her to come, she will come a few paces and then pause with a look that seems to say, “You know, I am not really sure I like this. I think I would rather have Mama come over here and pick me up…” When I see the hesitation on her face, I usually clap and say “yaaay,” hoping to encourage her to come the rest of the way. When I do this, she stops, and with her cute, drooly grin, sits up and claps for herself and says, ”AHHHHH!” Then she gets down again and comes a little farther. She has also claimed the title of Master Confetti Maker. No paper is too big, too small, or too important for this self-designated position. Sunday school papers, Kleenex, kindergarten papers, business cards, addresses, maps, receipts, trailer brochures – all have fallen pray to the miniature shredder on legs. Thankfully, she can’t reach the scrapbooks yet!

I have really enjoyed the beauty of Minnesota in the spring. The lilacs are blooming, and their scent and color pervades almost every yard. I have never seen so many lilacs in all my life! The grass is that beautiful spring green, and with the blooming trees and their pink, white, and purple flowers, it is a sight to behold. We were in farm country last week, and the sight of that rich, black soil freshly turned in the fields made me want to take off my shoes and go walk in it. It makes such a contrast to the green grass and the tall, bleached weeds. Living in North Carolina with its red clay soil has given me an even greater appreciation for the beauty of the Northern/ Midwestern soil. I guess that might sound strange to some people, but I really do miss it, especially in the spring.

My brother Micah completed his One-Year Bible degree at Ambassador Baptist College this Friday, and although we were not able to attend, we are so excited about what he is allowing the Lord to do in his life. He has done a great job and we anticipate great things to come.

This week is a “free” week, which means that we have no meetings scheduled. It does not mean, though, that we will have nothing to do. We try to plan a week with no deadlines, but somehow, we always end up with a million things to do and places to go. This is our last week of school and I am looking forward to summer vacation. We will be heading south again after next Sunday’s meeting (Duluth, MN). Pray for safety as we travel and continued health.