New Friends, Delightful Mornings, and Alpacas

Derek has figured out how to use coffee beans, milk, sweetened condensed milk, vanilla, chocolate powder, his new manual coffee bean grinder, and his new milk frother (birthday gifts this year) to make me the perfect mocha.  It’s delightful.  So here  I sit, enjoying my homemade mocha, around 2 in the afternoon, with my laptop in hand, while both of my boys are napping.  This too is delightful.

Today was a great day at class.  There are some days when I come home feeling a bit defeated by the Spanish language, but most days, like today, I feel encouraged.  It’s been SO helpful that I had some previous exposure to the language.  I think it’s really helped everything to “click” much quicker.  I still have a long way to go, but it’s so nice when our teacher introduces a new rule, and I realize that I’ve already been applying it without really knowing why.

Today started out really well even before getting to school, though, because I got to see this:

 

I wish I could send this picture back in time to myself a month ago.  It’s so so wonderful to see how much Finn love’s his Celia.  This morning as we headed out the door to school he was giving her repeated hugs.  Added to that was the joy of getting to listen to John Piper for 30 minutes via my earbuds while walking down the street in the perfect 70 degree morning air to our school.  These morning walks are so good for helping both my mind and my body to warm up for the day.  I’m sure many of you would trade your commute for this one in a heartbeat. 

Lately God has granted us several great opportunities to spend times with our new missionary friends here in Arequipa.  There’s something so special about the bond that fellow missionaries can form in a foreign culture.  I know it doesn’t always work out that way, so I don’t want to take it for granted, but this is one aspect of missionary life that Derek and I have both really looked forward to. 

[side note: Does that sentence make sense?  I feel like there’s something wrong with it, but can’t figure out how to fix it, haha!  Since beginning our Spanish study I sometimes struggle with English!]

A couple days ago I got to go on an afternoon excursion with the Gutierrez’s and some of the ladies from church to a really interesting place that not only sells really wonderful alpaca yarn and garments, but also has a series of displays and demonstrations showing how alpaca yarn is made.

 

We saw and got to pet several alpacas penned in with a little nativity scene.  It seems I took this shot at a bad moment for one of them, however in retrospect, I suppose this sort of thing renders the Bethlehem scene a little more authentic, right?

This lady is a professional alpaca fur separator (not really sure what her official title is).  She was raised to know how to separate the fur into 4 different categories of softness depending on where on the animal it came from (apparently there are not many people who know how to do this).  She was very friendly, and let us feel the different types of fur.

 

This is a Cusqueñan lady who was weaving a traditional Quechuan blanket with the alpaca yarn.

 

Here we saw all of the old machinery that used to be used to sift through the alpaca fur and turn it into yarn. 

Yesterday was a national holiday here in Peru, a Catholic holiday celebrating the “Emaculate Conception,” and so we didn’t have class, but we offered to babysit for the Bonhams and Gutierrez’s so that they could go out and spend some time together before the Bonhams head back to the states on HMA for several months.  We really enjoyed our time with their children, and so did Finn.

 

 

He’s got a new little buddy.  On the ride home from church last Sunday they were cracking each other up with jokes that only they understood.  It was so fun to watch.

 

 

I’m continuing to make progress in the cooking department here.  I was so excited to locate peppermint extract at a little shop near the church last Sunday, so I’m going to try to make some mint chocolate brownies for our school’s Christmas party next Friday.  We’re all supposed to bring some sort of food to share from our own country.  Peppermint doesn’t seem to be a common thing here (sadly, the Starbucks in town doesn’t have my favorite - the peppermint mocha frappaccino) so I thought those brownies might be a good contribution.  I might also attempt to make some spinach dip if I can figure out how to do that with the ingredients here.  We’ll see about that.

Here’s a funny little story for you.  The other day at the grocery store I spotted this bag, and without really reading it, I assumed that it was chocolate covered almonds.  That’s what it appears to be from the picture, right??

 

Well it’s not.  It’s chocolate covered something else - still not really sure what, and Finn’s the only one who likes it.  We’re learning that you really can’t go by the picture alone when it comes to food here.  So our translation apps tend to get a lot of use during our grocery runs!

That's all for now!

- Laura

Our new life in Peru

A few new aspects of our lives here in Peru:

• Earthquakes - mild earthquakes seem to be fairly regular occurrences here.  A fairly regular topic of conversation with our classmates at language school is regarding who felt or didn't feel the most recent tremor.
• Fireworks - they like to shoot it off pretty regularly here...
• Focusing on breathing - I now realize that there are many times throughout the day that I hold my breath in order to focus on something else.  These instances are now always followed by a couple minutes of concentrated breathing, to reintroduce the oxygen that has been lost.  (Altitude issues)
• Wearing hats and sunscreen.  I've been told that there's a hole in the ozone layer over Peru.  I don't know how accurate that is, but it does get some of the highest UV levels of anywhere in the world (ironic considering Peru was the ancient center of sun worship).  So we gringos have to wear lots of sunscreen and hats.  I've never considered myself much of a hat person, but I'm learning to become one.
• Walking.  We don't have a car here, so we walk a lot.  We do taxis a lot too, but walking is good for us, so we do that when we can.  It never rains here either, so the weather's always perfect for walking!

Things we miss already:

• Cheeseburgers, sour cream, frozen vegetables, Campbell's soups, quick comprehensive shopping trips (because of no car, we do lots of little trips).
• Wifi
• Colder weather.  It's so weird to hear Christmas music and see Christmas decorations when it's sunny with a high of 75.  We don't complain, because the weather's beautiful, but I do miss the fall weather that I see in my friends' Facebook pictures!
• Our bed.  The one in our apartment just isn't all that comfortable :(

And now for a few pictures:

 Finn loves going for walks.  We use the stroller when we're going to leave our neighborhood, but we let him walk until we get to the gate of the neighborhood.

Derek got to play the keyboard at church this past Sunday, and really enjoyed it.

Finn is learning little by little to stay busy during the church service.  There is a room with toys where I can take him when he get's rambunctious, but no nursery workers, so we try to keep him in the service as long as we can.  Everyone is very understanding and forgiving, too, so we are thankful for that!

Some of my Spanish vocab and doodles.  We're trying to internalize a ridiculous amount of vocabulary words right now, so we're using any and all means to try to help them stick!

 Finn watching some ants on the sidewalk.  He also likes to point them out in our apartment.  Fortunately, they don't ever seem to come in hoards like they did sometimes in Alabama.

In the evenings Finn often asks for music, so we have lots of dance parties!  He's developed his own signature dance moves, which are really entertaining to watch.

That's all for now!

Laura

The Power of Imagination

In the past couple of years, I've come to see that the biggest challenge of the Christian life is to truly believe what the Bible teaches us about God and about our identity in Christ.  Every act of sin stems from some disbelief and consequential effort to look out for ourselves our own way.  The fight to truly believe in the beautiful truthes regarding all that God has supplied us with in Christ is so difficult.  One huge asset that God has given us for this fight, however, is our imagination.  I've been reading Sight-Shift, by Chris McAlister, and chapter 14, on imagination and scripture, has helped me to understand this.

I've noticed that I can spend hours in God's word in the morning, but the thing that most reliably results in my experiencing victory in my Christian walk during the day, is if I take even a very short amount of time to pray through each activity and interaction that I expect (or don't expect) to have that day.  And obviously this is due to the powerful way God works through prayer, but I think it is also a testiment to the way God works through the imagination He designed us to possess.  In imagining the way God could enable me to live victoriously during each part of my day, I train my brain to think correctly regarding the abundance of God's grace for me. And as McAlister points out, you can never out-imagine God's goodness to you regarding your identity in Christ.

Case in Point:
As a super shy/introverted person, it is hard for me to get motivated about stepping outside of myself and my fears to initiate conversation with Spanish speakers I meet on the street or in a store.  Why  this is such a fearful thing for me, I don't know, but through prayer and imagination, I've been able to experience some small victories.  Rather than just praying in general terms that God would help me to be a light for Him, I have prayed specifically that God would help me to be outgoing and fearless like the extroverted missionaries I admire so much.  I prayed specifically that as I enter the Bodega (a little convenient store) down the street, that I would have courage to shamelessly strike up a conversation in my limited Spanish vocabulary.  And guess what??  I did!  God did give me courage, and it was so encouraging to experience His grace that way.  Now I have a new friend down the street who I can't communicate with all that much yet, but she always has a sweet smile for menow, and in a city of so much unfamiliarity, that always lifts my spirits so much.  

I think that often we Christians limit our own spiritual growth by refusing to imagine the possibilities of how God would enpower us.  We ask for help in general terms but allow fear to keep us from asking Him to enable us to be what we really would like to be for Him.  We think, "I could never do that."  If you find yourself in that place, I encourage you to try utilizing your imagination a bit.  Remember, God's grace for you is greater than you could ever imagine, so why not dream a bit?                                                                      

- Laura

Our Apartment

 For those who are interested, this is our apartment for the next month:

The Kitchen

The Dining/Living Room:

 Our Room:

 Bathroom (there's a shower/tub to the left)

 Finn's room:

- Laura

Finn's Hair

Everyone loves Finn's hair here.

Today in the grocery store someone asked me if it was natural, haha.

Someone else walked up and after oo-ing and aw-ing for a moment, asked if I needed a nanny for him.  Fortunately we lined someone up for that job yesterday, so we won't need to hire a grocery store admirer!

- Laura

Learning to cook in Peru

Yesterday we decided to try and make baked BBQ chicken and salad for dinner.  We’re still figuring out grocery shopping and cooking and whatnot here, I thought that would be an easy low key meal to put together.  We had found chicken, BBQ sauce, lettuce, and salad dressing at the grocery store, and our kitchen was stocked with pots and pans, so it seemed like it should have been clear sailing.  Here’s what happened.

First I washed all of the lettuce in a bowl of water with disinfectant drops (we’ll be doing this to most of our fresh fruits and vegetables here to avoid “Montezuma’s revenge”).  Then I laid out the lettuce leaves to dry while I began on the chicken.

That’s when we ran into a snag.  We’d learned to use our stove top, but lighting the burners with a match each time, but we hadn’t tried out the oven yet, and apparently the pilot needed to be lit.  We spent quite a while trying to figure out how to do this and failed miserably.  So… we adjusted our plans and decided to cook it on the stove top.

The next snag occurred when it came time to open the bottle of BBQ sauce.  I have never encountered a plastic bottle of any kind as difficult to open as that one.  Derek worked for some time on unscrewing the top, and in the end we took a pair of scissors to it and pried it off.

Opening the bottle of salad dressing was only slightly easier.  Apparently there’s something we don’t know about how people open plastic bottles here.

After all of this time, you’d think the chicken would be done cooking, but no.  It took much longer than I expected.  Maybe it’s an altitude thing?

The whole meal took WAY longer to make than we anticipated, and in the end it really didn’t taste very good either.  We opened a can of fruit and bag of chips to go with it and those turned out to be the best part of the meal.

And Montezuma had his revenge in the end too.

Oh well.  A few lessons learned I guess…

- Laura

We Made it to Peru!

(scroll down for pictures)

We made it to Arequipa, Peru!  We arrived yesterday afternoon after a long afternoon/evening of travel.  All of our flights went smoothly, though we were close to missing our flight out of Atlanta.  The flight from Birmingham was delayed 30 minutes, and our layover was only an hour to begin with.  So we were the last ones to board, but there turned out to be plenty of space on the flight, so we got a 3-seat row to ourselves, which was a huge blessing.  Finn did very well on the flight all things considered.  It was still incredibly exhausting trying to keep him entertained for the 6 hour flight.  He finally nodded off to sleep for the final hour before landing in Lima.

We were all exhausted when we got to the Lima airport, but I think the adrenaline must have been flowing, because as I lifted one of our 50 lb storage tubs at baggage claim, I thought to myself, oh, I must have gotten a light one!  No sooner had I said it than I realized that there wasn’t a light one.  Derek also said that everything felt way lighter than he remembered that evening.  We knew our travel from baggage claim to the hotel across the street from the airport would very possibly be the most trying part of the trip.  We had 8 checked bags/tubs in addition to a carry-on bag, a guitar, two rather heave personal item bags, and Finn in a stroller. 

So we grabbed 3 of those luggage carts, loaded (read overloaded) them up, and made our way very, very slowly to immigration.  Derek pushed two carts side by side, and I pushed one while pulling the stroller behind me.  I’m sure it was quite a sight.  The immigration officer was very curious about what all we had in the tubs.  She asked specifically if we were bringing medical equipment (which made us think about the time we did enter Lima with a bunch of medicine on a church mission trip several years ago.  At the time we were very fortunate that no one asked that question!).  We assured her that it was mostly clothes and baby things, and she was just fine with that. 

Next we slowly wheeled our way toward the nearest elevator so that we could take the upstairs crosswalk out of the airport to the adjacent hotel where we had a reservation for what was left of the evening (it was after midnight already).  We discovered that no more than one person and one luggage cart could fit in the elevator at a time, so Derek went up first with the cart, sent the elevator back down to me, and then I pushed the next cart in and sent it up to him by itself.  Several people gathered about that time, so I let them take the next few trips up, before sending the next cart up, and then finally Finn and myself rode up.  The whole elevator thing probably took about 45 minutes.

After wheeling down the hall to the hotel, a very nice bell hop came to help us, and things  got much easier.  They put most of our bags in storage for us, and we checked in and went to our room.  Finn wasn’t too happy about being stuck in his bed in a strange place, but he was so tired that he didn’t have the energy to cry for long before falling asleep, and we all slept well.

Our flight the next day wasn’t until 12:45, so we got to take our time getting up and going in the morning, and the concierge man from the hotel was kind enough to help us get our luggage back over to the airport to re-check them.  This last flight to Arequipa was just over an hour long, and then we were greeted by a familiar and welcoming face.  How nice that was!  Nate Bonham, an MTW missionary here in Arequipa, came to meet us at the airport and help us get to our apartment.  Our contact from the language school and his son were also there to greet us and lead us to our new apartment. 

Our apartment.  It’s a simple, 3rd floor 3 bedroom/2.5 bath flat that we are slowly making our own.  There are lots of big windows with a beautiful view of the Arequipa snow tipped volcanos.  I’ll have to take some pictures soon.  When we first arrived yesterday the first thing we did was to set up Finn’s pack n play and get him in bed.  Then we went to bed ourselves.  Finn didn’t sleep long, though, so neither did we.  We exited the bedrooms to a livingroom full of luggage, and slowly started to open them and search for Finn’s toys and books (top priority!).  The Bonhams and Gutierez’s (the other sweet MTW family here) had gotten us a bunch of groceries to make it through the first few days, so we were thankful not to need to go out grocery shopping immediately.

We took our time about things the first day, focusing primarily on Finn’s needs, trying to make him feel secure.  I found his stuffed animals and books and did what I could to make his room feel like home.  We gave him lots of milk (Finn’s #1 comfort food), fed him some banana and noodles (also favorites), and then bathed him and put him to bed.  Finn slept like a champ the first night.  Even when the sun came up at 5am.

Today the Bonhams picked us up for church.  Everyone was so friendly and kind to us, though we couldn’t communicate a whole lot yet.  A few people tried out a little English with us.  The Bonhams have apparently started an English class as a ministry of the church, and when they told the class that we would be coming they were excited about the opportunity to try out what they had learned.  After church Nate and Nathaniel had to lead a new membership class at the church, but Nikki and Alicia took us and the kids (they each have 3) to a local mall where we got lunch and then did some shopping.  It was so nice to have that time with Americans who have done this transition themselves in recent years.  They answered so many questions and helped us find the things we needed at the store.  Nikki was also kind enough to let me borrow her cell phone to make a facebook post to let everyone know we had arrived safely!  (We still don’t have sim cards for our phones or any internet access).

Our first impressions of Arequipa?  It’s very very dry.  My eyes and skin have been tingling from the dryness and I’ve been applying lotion and chapstick constantly.  It’s warmer than I expected, and the sun is pretty brutal in the middle of the day.  It is the dessert, but with the backdrop of the huge volcanoes, Arequipa is truly beautiful.  The city seems much like other Latin American cities I’ve visited with bumpy streets, lots of taxis and many boxy buildings all squished together.  The people we’ve interacted with so far have been very friendly, though, and the grocery store seemed to carry a lot of familiar things.  Most importantly they had lactose free milk, which we loaded up on for Finn (a huge answer to prayer!)

We haven’t used public transportation ourselves yet, but we’ll try that out soon.  We are just starting to get our bearings, and want to make sure we can tell a taxi driver how to get us home!  I’m so thankful that we have a week to figure everything out and establish a routine here before starting classes.  I am looking forward to class though.  I’ve already picked up on a few new Spanish words that I’m excited about now knowing. 

We still feel exhausted all the time.  Part of that may be the altitude (I think it’s around 8000ft. here?), some of it is recovering from our long day of travel, and some of it is just taking in everything new.  It’s comforting to have our own space, though, and to see Finn’s excitement already when we return to it after being out.  He’s been such a joy to have along for this journey.  He’s been overtired most of the last couple of days, but still he regularly says please and thank you, and gives lots of smiles.  We are so thankful for how well he’s handled everything so far. 

We are biding our time until sickness inevitable sets in.  We’re being careful about drinking only bottled water, and not eating fresh cut vegetables unless they’ve been disinfected, but in reality we know we’ll likely be sick quite a bit our first year here.  That won’t be fun, but it’s all part of moving to a 3rd world country, and we know God will provide for all of our needs through the good and the difficult.

We’re so thankful for all of the prayers and sweet notes of encouragement on facebook from all of our friends and family!  What a blessing it is to know so many are interceding for us before our heavenly Father.

It’s 8pm, now, and though it’s early, I think it’s bedtime for me.  We’ve made it through day 2!

 At the Birmingham airport

 In the airplane, coloring with Finn.

 The view of the Arequipa volcano from our living room window

 We found a Dunkin Donuts with free wifi today!  Finn enjoyed his doughnut!

Our Thank You Video

What does it feel like, right before moving to Peru?

I’ve been saying that I need to sit down and write for the last few days.  Our big move is getting so close, and I’ve been lying awake at night trying to process what is coming, but nothing helps me do that like putting pen to paper (well, fingers to the keyboard, that is).  And I really want to help all of our prayer supporters to walk this journey with us, so writing about what we’re going through is a win win!

For most of September we were in a weird sort of limbo where we knew we were so close to meeting our financial need, but not quite close enough yet to purchase tickets down there.  That changed a couple weeks ago and we got the go ahead to set a travel date.  Within about a week the remainder of our support came in, and since then our lives have been a progression from one item to the next on our To Do Before We Move list. 

One of the top items on that list has been to spend time with people.  So Derek and I have been trading off with Finn quite a bit to spend one on one time with friends here, and we’ve also enjoyed spending time as a family with some of you in the evenings as well.  These times with friends have been so refreshing because we’ve been able to just invest in our relationships and talk about exciting things ahead without any support raising agenda or notions there of.  Actually, come to think of it, I don’t think we’ve felt this sort of freedom in our interactions with our friends in years.  I’ll explain:

Derek and I both loved serving on staff at a church with the sweetest body of believers ever, but between the two of us, we were responsible for recruiting the vast majority of the volunteers needed for church to happen, and so it was often hard to have truly platonic, agenda-free interactions with people.  Right after moving to Birmingham Derek joined the congregation as a staff member, and I went on staff not too long thereafter, so we didn’t really have friends here before taking on those roles.  Now, for the first time, we can go to church without wondering if people cringe inside when they see us approaching them.

Anyway… freedom from that has been beautiful.  For the record, I would totally go back to church work - especially somewhere like Cross Creek, if God led that way.  Every job has its ups and downs, but Cross Creek Church is truly a special congregation, and we are so thankful for the time we had growing, living, and serving alongside our brothers and sisters in Christ there!

OK, back to our move.  We really are excited about it, but some of the logistics and the initial culture shock part of it are definitely sobering.  And travel with Finn has never been fun, but travel with Finn and 7 checked bags is going to be truly challenging.  Our initial leg of the trip will get us to Lima at close to midnight on Friday night, and then we’ll go through customs with all of those bags and an overtired toddler.  Then we will attempt to move ourselves and all of those bags to the adjacent hotel for the night for a few hours of sleep (hopefully).  Then we’ll wake up, return to the airport (thankfully the hotel and airport are connected by a flyover walking bridge) with all of the bags, check them in again, and take another short flight to Arequipa, our destination.  Then we will find our contact from the language school who is supposed to pick us up and transport us and our stuff to our apartment.  (I sure hope his vehicle can handle all of the bags!)  Then we will have 9 days to adjust to life in Peru before becoming full time students.

Please pray for us on Friday, November 6th, and Saturday, November 7th, friends!  Those 2 days are what keep me up at nights right now.  I have no doubt that God will carry us through, but I guess my faith isn’t strong enough to keep me from running a play by play in my mind of how we will survive those days whenever I have a moment of pause.

As far as language school goes, I’m really pretty pumped.  I love learning and I usually really enjoy classroom settings.  Derek’s probably a little more apprehensive about that than I am, as school was never a huge love of his.  Our language school program will include both class time and conversational practice time with a tutor, however, and I bet he’ll do better than me at that second part.  I will really have to work at overcoming my introverted tendencies.

So that’s most of what I’ve been thinking about lately.  We’ve been doing a lot of packing and repacking, repeatedly trying to weed out additional belongings that we can do without for the next 2 and a half years.  That process really hasn’t been too bad, though.  Finn has never held too closely to any of his belongings, and Derek and I have both moved enough times that this process is old hat.  At least it feels that way now.  Maybe we’ll feel differently after getting to Peru with only a fraction of the things that have defined home for us.

We’re planning an official thank you video that should be posted on here in the next week or so, so stay tuned for that.  We truly are so thankful for everyone who has walked the support raising journey with us and encouraged and prayed for us so faithfully.  More on that soon!

- Laura

My heart is more full now.

Today I was helping Finn put stickers on a piece of construction paper, and he did this thing--several times--that I am still marveling at.

A week or so ago we discovered that while Finn doesn't have much of an attention span for coloring yet, he really enjoys stickers.  So we bought a book of stickers and for the past few days, we've been peeling stickers out of that book and handing them to him (he can't get them off himself) so that he can stick them onto a piece of paper.

Today, while doing this with Finn, it occurred to me to let Finn choose which sticker he'd like next.  It took a minute for him to catch on to the idea, but then he discovered that he loved it.  And then he started doing this thing.  Every time he had successfully placed a sticker on the paper, he turned back to the sticker book and broke into this intense grin, making two tight fists with his hands in front of him, and shaking in glee for just a moment, before choosing a sticker.  It was sheer delight that I saw on his face every time he realized that he could once again choose any sticker he wanted, and I would give it to him.

After a while he realized that he could turn the pages of the sticker book, and find a different page that suited him better.  Our sticker activity transformed into a leisurely stroll through the pages of the sticker book.

So I was thinking tonight, about the joy Finn felt in that moment over the freedom to choose and receive.  I so often have that myself.  But so often I move past the moment without stopping to grin, make fists, and shake in delight.  So here's to savoring the moments.  And here are a few of the delightful moments I've shared with Finn lately!

Finn's first time hiking with us (not in a carrier).

He's REALLY  been enjoying his "YeYe Bible" that reads aloud Bible stories to him in his Ye Ye's voice.

Choosing a sticker!

Chocolate pudding dessert.  Yum!

Finn has LOVED this car the past few days since Aunt Dora brought it by for our yard sale.  We'll all be sad to see it go.  It'll be one of the first thing Finn gives up on his missionary kid journey.  

Making a call on his phone (an old flip phone of mine) in his favorite chair.

Playing guitar on his stage.  Just like Daddy.

You know, all of these moments and more have been a part of my life recently, but until I stop and think back on them, and see them like this in pictures, I didn't really appreciate them.  My heart is more full now, than when I began typing this blog post.

- Laura

What I Might have in Common with the Damsels of Medieval History.

Last night I watched the new release, Far From the Madding Crowd on DVD, and this morning as I went for a brisk walk around the neighborhood with Finn in the jogger, I kept thinking about it.  I really, really liked it, and I asked myself why.  It’s a definite chick flick (full disclosure there), and a appreciated that there were no premarital or extramarital affairs (a rare find in chick flicks these days), but it wasn’t a straight up fairy tale either.  In fact the heroine makes some pretty lousy decisions along the way.  She’s not all bad.  She does strive to be a good steward that which God brings her way in life (though God is not mentioned in the film), but when it comes to romance, she tends to defer too much to her emotions and passion.  This tendency is all too realistic today and is a common side effect in our society of the exaltation of romance and passion to the exclusion of wisdom.  

So I asked myself this morning, “why am I so taken with this film?”  I’m usually one of those people who prefers movies in which the hero or heroine is primarily virtuous, and so I can root for them, so to speak, in every respect (fanciful, I know).  But this movie was not like that.  The answer I came to, was twofold.  The first part being that which many will think is obvious—that the movie reflects the fallenness that exists in real life.  But the second part is that while the heroine is flawed, her enduring suitor is not - and this too reflects real life.  Real life in Christ, that is.  

OK, at this point if you think you might want to see the movie, you might not want to read further.  I won’t give away a lot of details, but if you’re one of those people that hates to know much of anything about how a film turns out before you see it, then you better stop reading now.

I warned you.  Now here’s what I REALLY loved about this movie. 

Early in the movie, Bathsheba (yes, a name you Bible scholars have heard before) receives her first proposal of marriage from the kind, hard working farmer next door, Gabriel, and while she doesn’t flat out refuse him at the start, she doesn’t feel for him what she wants to feel from a suitor.  She’s not weak in the knees over this man, and so though she has great respect and fondness for him, she determines that she has no need of a husband at the moment and will hold out for a more compelling offer.

Gabriel accepts this response with great dignity, but finds himself inclined to stick around and look out for her, so to speak.  He doesn’t pester her or make any further attempts at winning her over, but he quietly uses his skill in farming to help her succeed in life.  Over the course of time he watches her fall in “love” with a dashing young heart breaker, and still he sticks around.  

Throughout the movie there are various highs and lows for Bathsheba, and ironically she finds herself coming back to Gabriel for advice over and over again not only for farming matters but matters of the heart as well.  She slowly finds herself becoming more and more dependent on his help and moral support, and at last (no big surprise, really), comes to realize what a fool she has been all along to take him for granted and mask indifference to him.

According to early British literature’s rules on the art of courtly love,  The value of love is commensurate with its difficulty of attainment.  

What if Bathsheba had accepted Gabriel’s original offer of marriage?  Would she have come to value his love as greatly as she eventually did when he persisted despite her continual rejection and unworthiness?  What if Adam and Eve hadn’t eaten the fruit in the garden?  Would we value the great love of our Father as much without seeing the lengths to which it would take Him?  

Or perhaps like the damsels of medieval history, and like Bathsheba, we have to be persuaded.  

Perhaps only a long, bumpy ride of a story is the best way for us experience love at its finest. 


- Laura

Concert and Auction Tonight!

Music for Missions is Tonight!  Can't wait to see everyone there.  Come early to find parking as it'll be a little bit tight.  The online auction will be ending at 8:15 tonight too.  Anyone can participate in the auction as long as you can come pick up your winnings from us at some point (we won't be shipping).

- Laura Dougherty

Online Auction Begins Tonight!

Our Online Online Silent Auction begins tonight (@7PM) at www.32auctions.com/dougherty

We've had 30+ items completely donated so that all proceeds will go to help us get to Peru!  The auction has gift certificates, vacation stays, artwork, gift baskets, photo sessions, and even a home cooked meal!

Visit our auction site now to participate!

View our recent update letter to see more details on how the auction works.

- Derek and Laura Dougherty

God Sightings Today

I had several God-sightings today.  I didn’t recognize any of them as such when they occurred, but now, sitting down the reflect on my day at the close of it, I realize that He was right there with me, offering regular assistance as I went through the day - kind of like a parent would for their young beloved child.

1.  Finn came down with what seems to be a fever virus early this afternoon.  He woke up early from his nap screaming.  I got him up and saw that he had spit up a tiny bit on himself, and he was really really hot, so I started a lukewarm bath for him.  As soon as I put him in the bath he lost his lunch.  Thank you God for letting that happen AFTER he was in the bath!  What a sweet mercy that was!

2.  It just so happened that we had the exact amount of children’s tylenol that we needed when his fever spiked tonight.  We gave him what he needed, and Derek could pick up some more when he was out and about this evening.  Thank you God!

3.  Several days ago I noticed that lifeway.com had a REALLY good deal on their Read and Share Bible Story DVDs, and so I decided to order a couple of them for Finn.  This morning, just a few hours before the fever struck, they were delivered to our doorstep.  It turned out to be the perfect thing to help him rest and divert his attention from feeling uncomfortable.  Thank you God!

4.  Tonight I was talking with Derek about whether it would be a good evening to watch one of our Spanish subtitled movies from the library, and it occurred to me that I should probably check to see how many days we had before we need to return them.  I knew we had at least another day or two.  So I went on my library account online and low and behold, a couple of books that I COMPLETELY forgot we had checked out were due TODAY!  Thank you God for sending me to my account today!  Thank you God for the ability to renew library books online so that I don’t have to leave my sick baby to return them tonight!

Who knows how many other little things God did for me today while I took them granted.  What a tender loving Father I have!

What did God do for you today?

Another Reason We're Still Here

I feel like every single week, and sometimes daily, I have the thought, “maybe that is why God still has us here?” Sometimes it is after a great conversation where I am able to see God using me (or Derek) to encourage or motivate someone.  Sometimes it’s after God puts me in a situation that causes me to turn to Him and ultimately grow a little closer to Him.  Sometimes it’s after we meet someone new who becomes interested in helping the gospel go forth in Peru.  Sometimes it’s after connecting with someone from long ago who turns out to need some encouragement or prayer.  Every week I am noticing ways that God is using us and growing us here right now, and I wonder afterward whether that is the reason God hasn’t moved us to Peru yet? So that we could have that encounter? 

In truth, the answer is probably yes, yes, and yes.  There must be a million reasons, and all of them intertwined and connected; we serve a God who is infinite and thorough.  And tonight it occurred to me that this waiting is causing me to notice these significant “God-moments” more than before.  In looking to justify the wait, I’m seeing God’s hand at work.

The title of our website is inspired by this quote: 

“There is no event so commonplace but that God is present within it, always hiddenly, always leaving you room to recognize him or not to recognize him. . . in the last analysis all moments are key moments, and life itself is grace.” - Frederick Buechner

I think that all moments could be key moments if we would recognize them as such.  The challenge is to see God in everything and accept His constant presence and orchestration.  In this seeing and accepting the yoke becomes light, and the struggle becomes purposeful.  Yet most moments pass without us noticing Him.  

Through this waiting season, however,  God is opening my eyes to a few more moments than before.  And THAT is significant.  I hope it doesn’t stop when we finally do get to Peru!

Summertime Fun with Finn

Here in Alabama, we're busy coming up with fun things to do INSIDE and out of the HEAT!

Mom was busy with the camera, so Finn took her place cooking next to dad.

Last week we pulled this fun Train Set (Thanks so much to the Vander Noots for this awesome hand-me-down!) out for Finn, and he has been absolutely enthralled with it.  It's the first thing he wants to do each morning.

Playing Peek-A-Boo with Dad (Rearranging his face a bit in the process).

                                      

Finn enjoyed his first popsicle in the bathtub!

Climbing on and off of chairs is a new hobby of Finn's.  Unfortunately the climbing on part usually requires assistance still.  

- Derek and Laura Dougherty

Distract Me, Please!

 Finn is learning to be patient.  He's decided that he really likes having the TV on and will often run up to it and put his hands on it, letting us know that he'd like us to turn it on, and so this affords us a regular opportunity to teach him about patience.  We do let him watch some TV most days.  He currently enjoys Barney, Sesame Street, Curious George, and his favorite - this completely obnoxious thing called "Baby First" (no plot whatsoever - just cartoons characters bouncing around and super silly music).  But quite often we have to tell Finn, "It's not time to watch TV yet, we'll do that later."

You can probably all bring to mind a relatively accurate picture of a toddler's response to this sort of directive.  One of the beautiful things about 16 month olds, however, is that they are still young enough that they are fairly easy to distract.  So redirecting Finn quickly to some other activity is generally the best way to avoid much struggle in these situations.

This whole scenario happens on a regular basis at our house, but it wasn't until yesterday that I realized how similar I am to a toddler in my relationship to God and His plan for me.  I was at a women's Bible study yesterday, and at the end as everyone went around and shared prayer requests, I was struck by how each person in the room was, like me, having to wait on something.  And that is probably true of most people.  We all have issues in our life that we want resolved and we have to be patient for God to either resolve it for us (or in some cases, to show us that it's not His plan to resolve it - in which case we must resign ourselves to wait until heaven). 

As wonderfully faithful as God has been to us through our entire missionary itineration, it's so difficult not to dwell on the fact that we're trying to get to Peru, and we're not there yet.  I am constantly asking God for patience, and a willingness to accept His timing gratefully.

Like Finn, I so often run back to the TV, slap my hands on it, and whine that I'm not getting my way.  "Why is it taking so long?  I really just want us to be at 100% now so we can go!"  But just like how the TV isn't always the best thing for Finn (I know, I know, it's probably actually never the BEST thing for him), being in Peru is clearly not the best thing for me currently either, or else my loving father would have brought me there by now.

So my new prayer is this.  "Please, Father, distract me!  Redirect my attention away from the thing I'm waiting for toward the things that you have for me right now.  Please lead me like a toddler away from my discontentment and toward the activities that You have for me to do now.  Amen."

- Laura Dougherty

In honor of our anniversary

 In January, 2008 I went on my first ever date with a boy.  Derek took me to Chattanooga, treated me to a delicious meal at Sticky Fingers, guided me on a walking tour of the art district, and asked if he could pursue romantically.  He told me what he liked about me and that he would not ask to pursue me if he didn't hope that God would lead the relationship toward marriage one day. 

           

Later I wrote to my friend, "I like him for his character (as you know) and I like his personality and relational-ness, his love for God, and his cautiousness and carefulness towards me."

In February, 2008, my first ever valentines gift from a boy was a song that Derek wrote and sang for me as he played it on the piano.  It was the most beautiful thing I'd ever heard.  He said he had written for me while on Christmas break a couple months earlier.

I wrote, "I was blown away.  It was beautiful and inspiring and I couldn't believe it was supposed to be about me!"

June, 2008- (7 years ago) I wrote to my friend, " I just wanted to tell you about Derek and I, and how incredibly good it is. I really have tried to think objectively about everything and I've put a lot of thought into what would be wise and God honoring, and I really feel like God has smiled down on our relationship and made it perfect.  We talk about lots of different things, but one thing I appreciate so much about our conversations is that God and His sovereignty and providence is never too far from our thoughts or words as we talk."

In March, 2009, Derek again took me to our favorite places in Chattanooga.  Later that evening he asked me to marry him.

On June 19, 2009 (6 years ago today), I married my best friend in the world.  Derek is to date the kindest, most selfless person I have ever met, and I am still in awe that God would allow me to be his wife.  Our marriage has been the biggest blessing of my life.  What a joy it has been to serve God alongside Derek Dougherty!  

- Laura