The decision is made

After hearing back from all the law schools she applied to,  Emily has decided to attend Indiana University's  Maurer School of Law.  The law school's home page says it is the national leader in the study of the global legal profession...  which is exactly what interests Emily.  The positives of attending there are that it is an excellant program, she got a great scholarship, she knows the area since she is already living in Bloomington, and she already has a good church and Christian friends.   The negatives...hmm. Well the only one from her parent's point of view is that it is still on the other side of the country!

There is an introductory course that begins in early July which allows Emily to ease back into graduate level work after a year off and gives her an extra course elective later on.  She will finish her commitment with the Red Cross in mid June and can begin her 3 year law degree right away.  

Thank you for all who prayed for her during the decison process.  Emily is very excited!!

Signs of Spring

For an area of Washington that boasts more than 300 days a year of sunshine, February and March are the times we do get rain.  For the last couple of weeks we have been getting wave after wave of wet weather coming inland over the mountains. On my way to Mattawa a couple of days ago I saw the rain clouds hanging on the top of the mountains.It was an amazing sight although I don't think my phone camera caught it very well.

Even the miles of desert on both sides of the road have a twinge of green.  A sure sign of Spring!

Low clouds hug the top of the Rattlesnake mountains

On the return trip the clouds were clearing but still magnificent to see.

 A more colorful signs of Spring are the hyachinths, daffodills, and tulips that are begining to bud. Yesterday I couldn't resist taking a photo of the first daffodill blossoms. We also have rubbarb and bleeding heart sprouting and the lilacs have fat buds. Although I don't have any in our yard, they say the forsythia is beginning to bloom so it is time to prune the roses I didn't get to last fall.  Wonderful signs of Spring here in South Central Washington.

Two weeks later

It is hard to believe it has been two weeks since Jim left for the Solomon Islands.  He had a very busy stay in the capitol, Honiara, before catching the plane to the Roviana language area.  It took Jim a couple of days to get our personal things stored at the translation office and set up in the United Church Rest house flat that we have been allowed to rent when we are in Munda.  The cooking issue was resolved and he was able to reconnect phone and electric service at the office so he seemed ready to settle down to work.  

Unfortunately, his body decided to make sure he took a rest. Either exposure to a new flu bug or old familiar allergens, eating new foods, reacting to the heat, or just a drop in the adrenalin level, caused Jim to spend a couple of days in bed and near the toilet.  Perhaps it was  a combination of all of the above.  Regaining strength and energy was helped later last week by cooler temperatures as some tropical storms passed through the area.  One day he emailed that it was raining sideways – not unusual during a windy rainstorm in the Pacific. 

What a blessing that we have been able to communicate via email almost every day.  Writing him about my day and news from the kids helps me feel like he is a part of it all.  And I enjoy hearing about what verses he has been working on and news from our friends there.

Jim has been working alone since arriving in Munda because our translator and friend,  Rev Aaron Bea (bay-ah) is in Honiara undergoing medical tests.  It looks serious.  

Please PRAY for him and any decisions that will need to be made based on his diagnosis.

Jim leaves for the Solomons February 26th

          As we backed the car out of the garage at 4:30 in the morning we met the lady delivering the newspaper.  She offered for us to take the paper but our minds were more on getting to the Pasco airport to try to beat the crowd at the check in counter.  Yes, at our small community airport, which is only about 10 minutes from where we are living, there is quite a rush between 5 and 6 am as many of the regional flights take off early morning to hub destinations like Seattle, Denver, and San Fransisco.   Jim was hoping to get his luggage book from Pasco straight through to Honiara and he knew that would really hold up the line.  As she had to look up the codes for 4 connecting flights, the check-in clerk commented on the "unusual" places he was heading for;  Nadi, Fiji and Honirara, Solomon Islands.

Jim at home making sure his bags aren't overweight.


I intended to send this post out 3 days ago but had trouble downloading this photo of him groggily waiting at the Pasco airport.

           With hours of layovers in San Fransisco and again in Los Angles, Jim had plenty of time to call me several times and even Jeffrey and Emily to say one last goodbye.  The flight from LA left at 9:30 pm and while he slept, he "lost" his Sunday and arrived in Fiji on Monday morning.  Although he had a couple of "travel experiences" in Fiji, Jim eventually got to Honiara only an hour late.  He said he had the normal reaction on arriving from winter in very dry, eastern Washington to the heat and humidity of Honiara - like walking into a suana! 

          Twenty four hours later he got on another smaller plane and flew to Munda.  While in Honiara Jim had done banking and shopping, met individually with our translator, Rev Bea, the Bible Society consultant, and our SITAG director, sorted stuff from storage and washed the musty linens, and enjoyed the fellowship of other translation families over meals. 

         Now he is trying to settle into a very basic living situation and get back to translation work.

Valentine's Day

On this day devoted to love I thought I would share some of the things I love.

Bargain shopping

Phone calls from our kids

My husband and the roses he gave me for today

My well-used old Bible with many of God's promises of love marked  

"And now these three remain: faith, hope and love.
  But the greatest of these is love.  Follow the way of love..."

The next step

Jeffrey and Emily have been blessed with many opportunities to develop the skills and abilities God has given them.  Looking back, we see the great educational experiences they had in the advanced Denver elementary school they attended while Jim was in seminary, with the dedicated itinerant teachers that helped homeschool while in the Solomons, the self discipline and organization they gained with NorthStar Academy internet High School, and the friends and sense of community they enjoyed at Taylor University.

The next step in academics for Jeffrey came last year when he began the dual Master degree program at Indiana University for Library Science and Information Services. With one semester done and 2 years more to go, he is feeling confirmed in God's direction into this career path.  God provided not just one but 2 part time jobs this school year that are helping financially but also fueling his love of sharing information with others.   He is attending a very good church and a small group that just "happened" to be meeting on his only free evening of the week where he enjoys fellowship and friendships.

For Emily, graduation from Taylor with degrees in English Literature and Philosophy left her uncertain about what her next step would be other than taking a year to volunteer with the AmeriCorp Vista program at the Red Cross in Bloomington, Indiana.  Having a heart to use her skills to bless the world around her, Emily did not see graduate studies in these areas doing more than satisfying her own love of learning. 

As God promises Proverbs 3:5&6, He did direct her steps and seemingly out of the blue, Emily decided to persue a law degree in International law.  Although she did very well on the GRE, law schools require their own graduate exam. So after working at the Red Cross office she spent time studying for the LSAT and researching the hundreds of schools for the ones she thought best fit her desires.  As anyone who knows Emily can guess, she did very well on the exam and has been accepted at 3 law schools so far.  The next step is the decision at which one she will attend in September. 

It has not been all easy for Emily though, with stretching experiences at work, with minor health issues, and several car breakdowns. We are thankful for the church plant congregation she attends and the small group friends she has made.  Living with a good friend and your brother in a God-provided housing situation also has been a blessing. 

As with all of us, each day brings steps of faith and obedience.  We are thankful that God knows our steps and will lead in His plan!  Jer. 29:11

New birth

The new year started right for one of the families in our small church in Mattawa, WA.  On January 1st Aaron Cruz accepted Jesus as his Savior and Lord.  He had watched his wife, Inez, be baptized a few months ago and shortly afterwards started attending services with her.  Now they are a couple united in Christ. 

Immediately Aaron wanted to be baptized in the nearby Columbia River.  Most of us "older" Christians thought waiting 'til spring or even summer would be a good idea but no,  he wanted it right away and was disappointed to have to wait a whole week.  On January 9th the church family gathered together at the river as the two elders of our church, Mark and Rod baptized Aaron.  There were snow flurries but the Body was warm with the joy of having a new brother. 

Aaron being baptized with the bundled-up congregation watching and then sharing his joy with wife Inez.