Heart Friends

You know the kind of friends I'm talking about...those friends with whom you can let your hair down with and just be yourself. I had the opportunity to go visit some friends of the heart for 9 days and it was just what the doctor ordered. We had so much fun catching up and just enjoying time together. Very grateful for the way Father has placed these people in my life and how He uses them to encourage my heart each time we're together. Thanks a bunch to both H families!

An Egg-stra Special Meal

Eating a meal in my host country can always be interesting to say the least. I always think that using chopsticks is no big deal...until today. Meals here usually include each person having their own bowl of rice. You usually order one dish per person, which you put in the middle of the table. Then, you each have your own chopsticks and just kind of take food out of the dishes in front of you and put a little at a time into your bowl of rice. Then, you eat out of your rice bowl. One of the cultural norms here between close friends is that during a meal you may take your chopsticks and take something out of one of the dishes in the middle and put it into your friend's rice bowl. It's like you're giving your friend an extra helping.

This evening, I was having dinner with my good friend, Victoria. We ordered a meat dish and then this small kettle of soup. The soup my friend ordered had a green leafy vegetable, mushrooms, quail eggs, and noodles in it. I was trying to be culturally appropriate and give my friend a quail egg. Let me just say that those suckers are quite slippery. I grabbed the quail egg with my chopsticks and reached over to put it in her bowl. Suddenly, the egg went flying out of my chopsticks and landed in her lap. Victoria is such a good sport. She just picked it up and threw it back into her bowl...no harm, no foul. She then picked up the quail egg with her chopsticks out of her bowl and ate it. We laughed so hard over that and she just kept saying, "It doesn't matter."

I'm thankful for a gracious friend and this funny story we can talk about for years to come. Note to self: practice using your chopsticks or stay away from the quail eggs!

Watermelon, Cantaloupe

From my youth up, I was involved with choirs and singing in ch*rch. During those times, I heard that if you forget the words or lose your place, just sing "Watermelon, Cantaloupe" and no one can tell you aren't singing the right words. Last night, I attended a local ch*rch's Wednesday evening singing service, which lasted two hours. They did provide song books, but it was all in my host country's language. Needless to say, I did not know all of the characters. I did okay until they started singing more up-tempo songs. So, I found myself wanting to sing the "Watermelon, Cantaloupe" addition just so I could keep up with them. It was a blessing just to see these faithful and committed brothers and sisters singing praizes to the King of Kings.
After the singing time, some of them were headed over to a pryer meeting that would last from 10 pm until 5:30 am. May Father continue to bless the ch*rch here and may many more be added to their number for His glry.

Celebrating the 4th in a Foreign Land

Celebrating any American holiday can be a bit challenging when you live in a foreign country. There are no US flags waving around town. Daily life goes on and no one gets a day off from work. I saw no signs for fireworks being set off to celebrate our country's freedom (fireworks are just a daily part of life here, so it's not that special). There were no supermarket fliers promising great buys on hamburgers, hot dogs, potato chips, sodas, or other fun picnic treats. So, you have to make a concerted effort to celebrate, thinking on the meaning of this important holiday and trying to create some fun things from home as well. I was blessed to have the ingredients to make a yummy (if i do say so myself) cheesecake. I also found the things to make a pretty good cheeseburger. With my American flags waving inside and patriotic music playing, The 4th of July was celebrated in this foreign land from this small apartment. As I was thanking Father for our nation, the freedom to w_rship Him was what stood out the most. We have many wonderful freedoms, but the most important one to me is the freedom to w^rship Him. This privilege is one that parts of our world do not know. So, I celebrate our great nation and the freedom to give gl*ry to our King of Kings. I also pry that the people of this nation without this right would have the opportunity to hear about the One who can give them true Freedom!

Can You Ever Receive TOO Much Help???

Going to the supermarket here in my host country is an experience all on its own. I do have the luxury of an indoor supermarket that is nice with stocked shelves. The import section in my new city is about the size of the Asian import section in my hometown. I now know how those Asians feel living in small US cities.

One area of the supermarket that I try to stay away from is the laundry detergent/health and beauty aids area. In other parts of the store, the staff just kind of let you look and don't try and make suggestions. But in this part of the store, they are VERY willing to make suggestions and tell you what they think is the best brand for the best price. On a recent trip, I needed to buy some body wash...very simple, right??? As soon as I walked up the aisle a swarm of employees started coming up to me and giving me their suggestions. I turned around and counted them. I counted eight women around me picking up bottles for me to try out and give my approval. This was a culture stress moment for me. I wanted to scream and run out (REALLY)! It was quite overwhelming. It was Father who helped me to calmly continue on my quest for this body wash and finally find a suitable fragrance. I politely thanked them ALL and headed for the checkout. Whew! Moral of the story...buy your body wash in a small store with only one clerk:)

A Visit To The Countryside

After being back in my host country for 2 months and making friends, I had the opportunity to make a trip out to the countryside to visit a Sunday group. As I was sitting in the service, I couldn't help but think about the conditions and how so many Americans would not have sat for two hours on a hard bench with no back without complaining. Of course, I'm talking about ME. In my heart, I was complaing that I was so uncomfortable. Yet, I didn't hear the others there saying they were uncomfortable. They were just seemingly glad to be there. I can definitely learn a lot from this bunch. It was a blessing to see how they wrshipped Father with such a passion.

Following the service, we were invited to a member's home for lunch and some pryer time. These folks don't kid about prying. They get with it and it is fervent. They were so welcoming and such a blessing to me. It was an honor to sit with them and have fellowship. One of the things that came to mind during this time was the fact that Father is at work all over the world. Out in the middle of nowhere, there were people wrshipping Him. The world may never see or know them, but the King of Hven knows them and that's all that matters.