Christmas 2010

Honesty:  I have never had a holiday season with so many shed tears, so much homesickness, or such restlessness.  I wanted to be in snowy Wisconsin so much throughout the month of December that I probably became annoying to be around because all of my conversations centered around the current temperature or current conditions in Minneapolis or my little town in Wisconsin.

But God is faithful.  Have I not said that over and over this year, even in this blog?  In spite of my often bad attitude, God blessed me with a wonderful Christmas.  

It started on Christmas Eve with a trip to one of my favorite orphanages, Eben-Ezer, where I have spent many hours working with my boys, each of them with special needs and special hearts.  

Julio-- always ready for a FOTO!

For Christmas Eve night (which is when Bolivian celebrations happen) we went to Cristo Viene Girl's orphanage, where we loved on kids and enjoyed their smiling faces.  

Heather created a pinata, and it was the highlight of the night

On Christmas morning Heather and I went to the annual Single's Stocking Stuffers party.  16 single missionary women gathered and filled one another's stockings with little goodies.  It was good to make a family when we are so far from our own.  

Sister's ready to celebrate!  Please note Heather's great earrings. :)

That afternoon we went to the house of some of my fellow teacher's and sang Happy Birthday to Jesus and watched White Christmas (so I did see snow on Christmas Day).

Singing Happy Birthday with banana bread. 

To continue my honesty, every part of me is glad that next year I will be with my family wearing a sweater and jeans for Christmas, but I am also so glad that God called me here this year so that I don't forget that God also left the comfort of heaven to be with us.  I praise Him that people in Bolivia are celebrating because the church was called to go to all nations and spread the joy of the news of Jesus's birth.

Jesus Was a Missionary

Merry Christmas from Bolivia, where it is 73 degrees and rainy-- high of only 89 today!

This entire Christmas season John 1 has been on my mind a lot.  Six months after my graduation from Bible college, I can confidently say that I will probably never understand the incarnation.  God taking on flesh blows my mind.

John 1:14- "And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we have seen His glory, glory as of the only Son from the Father, full of grace and truth."

He dwelt among us.  Jesus left perfect contentment with Father and Spirit to come to earth where He put on skin and told people the Good News that they need a Savior.  He showed that He is the Savior that they'd been waiting for by dying for their sins.  He is the Good News that He brought.

The Good News has remained the same, and so has the way that God chooses to share it.  He calls His followers to leave the place of comfort they have known and dwell with people who need the Gospel-- the news that Jesus has already died to be their Savior.  Today we call this missions.

During a time of year when it's hard for me to be without my family and the land that I love (snow in MN and WI yesterday!), it's good for me to remember that Jesus has experienced what I'm going through.  May I remember to dwell with people here, to live life with them, just as Jesus did.

 Urbana 09, a missions conference I attended last year, was the first time I saw John 1 through a missions lens.

Joyful, Conscious Waiting

Merry Christmas!


As I opened up my browser today, I was reminded that we are waiting for Christ's second coming.  Stories like this are happening on Christmas Day.  Things are not perfect here- so many things are going wrong in the world, yet still we are commanded to be joyful now.


May we be the most joyful people on earth today, in spite of the suffering around the world. In our joy, may we pray for and help those who are suffering, so that people who do horrible things, even people who plan to be suicide bombers, can instead hear the Good News.  


Wishing today that everyone celebrated Christmas.

Comfort

I know that God is with me on this day when Christmas will be different from what I know.  Praising Him for keeping me. 

Be to me a rock of refuge, to which I may continually come.

- Psalm 71:3

Christmas Nobaking

I'm finally getting into the Christmas spirit!  With a little over a week to go until school is out for our lovely three week break, things are finally beginning to feel a bit like Christmas around here.  This is thanks in no part to the 95 degree heat we've been having most days.  


With this heat in our non air-conditioned house, baking is quite the chore.  However, Heather and I have discovered that No Bakes (one of my favorite cookies anyway), which are made on the stove, don't do nearly as much damage to our kitchen.  Tonight I turned out three dozen of these for a Christmas program that my kids are putting on tomorrow night.  Here are some pictures of my Christmas spirit; watch for pictures of the Christmas program.

Thank you, Mom, for the beautiful table runner!

Here's a Christmas song I've been getting into lately!

Keeping Busy

Christmas without family will be hard, no doubt about it.  My strategy for not getting homesick, though, is to fully experience the Bolivian Christmas season and fully be present here so that I'm not missing things back home so much.


December has started, and suddenly there are plenty of things to keep me busy.  On Thursday my kids earned a party in art with my good friend, DPo (or Miss Potter), who teaches them.  Check out their excellent fruit sculpture creations that they made!

Miss Potter with my great artists!

Another highlight was getting to go to a high school graduation for one of the boys at our church with Heather last night.  Here we are at the big event.

I'm already sporting a new shirt from Abby!

Today Heather and I are off to a ladies' church event and then I have practice for the Christmas drama.  God is good to keep me busy, and I pray that in my busyness I will have time to reflect on why we make this season something to celebrate.


Verse I've been dwelling on (pun intended):

The Word became flesh and made His dwelling among us.  We have seen His glory, the glory of the one and only Son, who came from the Father, full of grace and truth.