Countdown: 1 Day

Tonight I thought about my last night in Africa, and the things that I was thinking and feeling. We were staying out in the middle of nowhere, kilometers from the nearest person. All around us were the night noises, the calls of the nocturnal world. I leaned back to stare straight up into the clear night sky, and the beauty made me catch my breath. There, far away from human light and pollution, I gazed at the wonders of the night lights, revealed like I had never seen it before. I’ve often marveled at the stars, but never have I seen so many span the sky as I did that last night in Africa. How close they seemed in their brilliance, nothing like the pasty white dots we sometimes see in more populated areas of the earth. As I lay back and started straight up, all I could see from horizon to horizon was millions of brilliant stars – each one seemingly hanging from an invisible thread and dangling just above my nose. It was almost as if I could touch them, but I was too afraid to break the stillness by reaching out my hand.

There I lay, contemplating the handiwork of my God and the insignificance of myself – how could I think of anything else in view of such splendor? “When I consider the Heavens, the moon and the stars which thou hast ordained, what is man, that thou art mindful of him?” Ever so gently, He reminded me that He is mindful of me. Do you know that God has a perfect plan for my life? There is no reason to worry or fret. He has each step planned out; I only need to trust. There is no fear in love, for perfect love casteth out fear. I was not fearful that evening, only thankful that He would be mindful of me, and that He would think of me enough to create a plan for me. And then, I wondered if I would ever return to my beloved Africa again. I asked Him, if He would see fit, if I could one day come back. My heart was so full, I couldn’t even find the words to write my thoughts that evening, but the memory was forever impressed upon my mind.

And now here I am, a mere nine months later, and I am going back. In just a matter of hours, I plan to lay back and once again, view the African sky.

Countdown: 2 Days

Last night was the appreciation banquet at LVBC for my dad for his 23 years of service at the church. There were 3 videos shown. First was a recap video of the last 23 years...

You Have Been Faithful - Pastor Doug Hammett from LVBaptist on Vimeo.

Next was the unveiling of a video the guys have been working on for our website. It came together wonderfully! After that, they showed the 'blooper reel'... so hilarious!

Who Are We? - Lehigh Valley Baptist Church from LVBaptist on Vimeo.

Who We Really Are....Blooper Reel from LVBaptist on Vimeo.

I love my church family... I'm going to miss them so much! Tonight is the sending service... I start tearing up every time I *think* about it, so I think it's going to be a rough night.

Countdown: 3 Days

Eyeball packing... that's what I'm doing today. I'm not quite ready to do the actual packing, so instead I'm stacking things up, eyeballing how they might fit in the suitcase, weighing the heavier items together to see how I want to split them up. I'm convinced that packing - good packing - is a cross between an art and a science. I tend to be more of a stuffer than a neat folder or roller, but there is a method to my madness, and much of my packing is thought out beforehand. When it comes down to the actual packing of the bags, I should be able to knock it out in under an hour on Monday night... but only because I've spent the time now preparing for it.

I'm also picking out my outfits for three important occasions: the banquet tonight, the sending service tomorrow night, and the flight on Tuesday. Tough, tough decisions, I tell you.

Tonight is the banquet... I'm ridiculously excited about the pie selections that will be there. :)

Countdown: 4 Days

Packing up what's left of the kitchen today --- it promises to be a busy weekend, and we're not planning on doing much cooking anyway. :)

Countdown: 5 Days

"...rid yourself before God of everything that might be considered a possession until you are a mere conscious human being standing before Him and then give God that." - Oswald Chambers

I read this quote recently on a missionary friend's Facebook page, and it struck a deep chord with me. That could have something to do with all the giving up of physical possessions. But surrender is more than just giving up physical possessions. The Lord has used this time of 'giving up' to teach me some valuable lessons - about myself and about surrender.

The point is not how much or how little one is giving up or one possesses. The problem lies much deeper than that - it is an issue of the heart. God may want me to be a pauper, or He may want me to be a king, but either way, He wants my heart and He wants all of it. 

When you take it all away, all the possessions, all the titles and honor, all the family ties and obligations, what do I want out of my life?

My Desire

Lord, I don't want my feet to traverse the world; I want to be Your feet, taking the good news to someone who has never heard. I want to be Your feet, responding in perfect sync, no matter what direction You want me to go.

I don't want my hands to hold possessions of worth and esteem; I want to be Your hands, holding out the eternal Word of life. I want to be Your hands, ministering to all You bring into my path.

I don't want my eyes to view situations in selfish interest; I want to be Your eyes, viewing situations with an eternal perspective. I want to be Your eyes, looking past the problems to see the possibilities.

I don't want my lips to speak my own praise; I want to be Your lips, speaking always the truth in love. I want to be Your lips, uplifting things that are just, pure, and good.

I don't want my own wishes, wants, or will to be first; I want to have Your will, always and perfectly worked through my life. I want every breath that I breathe, every step I take, every move I make to be just what You want from me.

"Lord, make my way prosperous - not that I achieve high station; but that my life may be a exhibit to the value of knowing God." - Jim Elliot

Countdown: 6 Days

Today may have been my last day with my little car, so I put on a jacket, put the top down, and ran some errands, blasting the heat when it got too chilly. It's been a faithful little Sebring... I shall miss it so.

Countdown: 7 Days

My Bible was falling apart... I've taken the binding completely apart two or three times and glued it back together. This last time I used super glue, and haven't had any problems with pages falling out for several months. :)

However, now the 'leather' cover was beginning to deteriorate, peel, and fall off. I briefly thought about replacing it with a new Bible, but the thoughts of abandoning my old friend with all its familiar markings and placement scared me. Seriously... I can picture a verse in my mind and know exactly where on the page it is located, even if I can't remember the exact reference. I've had this Bible for well over ten years, but the pages are still in wonderful shape... it just needed a new casing to keep the pages intact.

I decided to go with a recovering in fabric. I'm not sure how long it will hold up, but it looks nice for now, and if the fabric does start to peel off or fray, I just used rubber cement so it should come right off for replacement. If it helps me get a few more years of service out of my Bible before I have to replace it for a new one, I'll be happy!

Countdown: 8 Days

Monday Evening X 3 =

3 little 'helpers'

3 batches of apple dumplings

and 3 times as much flour on the floor as in the pie dough

:) 

(And consequently, not a lot of pictures of the process...)

Countdown: 9 Days

Yesterday, after a busy and productive morning and early afternoon, Sam and I headed for a small section of the Appalachian Trail that we've hiked several times - Bake Oven Knob. (Yeah, I've blogged about it before.) Though most of the leaves have just started changing around here, and the peak viewing season will be in a couple weeks, we won't be here then, and this was our last opportunity to go. The weather was gorgeous and I'm really glad we made the time to do it one last time...

Countdown: 10 Days

Oops...missed a countdown day. This is what I intended on posting yesterday. :)

A friend took me for my first bubble tea experience. It was amazing!!! I could see myself getting addicted to it. :) I saw this often in Thailand, but never had the opportunity to really try it, and I really didn't know what it was. I'm pretty sure I'll never find it in Africa. :)