Sunday, March 28, 2010

Home Again, Home Again, Jiggity Jig

We have now been home for one week after a long month and a half of traveling. Although it was difficult to leave our loved ones again, we are so glad to be home. Its taken us all several days to get somewhat back to normal, but I think the best way to express our current joy is through a dance performance by Sophie Mei.....

Dancing on a Cool Day in Thailand from marc lewis on Vimeo.

Sophie Mei dancing and having a great day.


The week after Sophie's 3rd birthday we flew to America and spent 4 lovely weeks visiting with friends, family and supporters. We, especially me, enjoyed as many yummy southern cooked meals as possible. I've always enjoyed good food but I feel the older I get, the more I enjoy- not a very good thing for an ever-declining metabolism. Collard greens, black-eyed peas, cornbread, a few Paula Deen recipes, Tres Leches cake, real mexican food, etc. I also had forgotten just how enjoyable a Chick-fil-a sandwich really is. There have been many foods that I dream about eating for so long and then when I finally get to eat it, I'm sorely disappointed- never as good as I remembered. But good 'ol Truett Cathy never disappoints. What is it? Is that sandwich anointed? Maybe so. God's blessing on a family who have chosen to honor Him first in all their dealings. Otherwise, it really doesn't make sense- a chicken sandwich so set apart from all others of its kind. ..... Ok, this is what happens when I just start typing the first things that come to my mind- a tribute to the Chick-fil-a sandwich.

Back to our traveling.... we enjoyed being home but the cold weather was pretty intense. We experienced snow 4 x's in those four weeks (Georgia, Tennessee and North Carolina). Sophie and I spent a lot of time indoors avoiding the weather and all the viruses that were rampantly attacking almost everyone we knew. She and I finally got colds but enjoyed staying snuggled up inside Grammy's house. While home, we ate good food (have I already mentioned that?), played really hard with all Sophie's cousins, had many cups of coffee around a table with all my favorite gals, lots of laughing, a little crying, trips to Wal-Mart, Target, and Chick-fil-a. Pretty enjoyable I must say.

Once we returned to Thailand we were at our house for four days and then left again for our Thai Summer Project in Chiang Mai. This retreat is designed to provide an ideal setting for our Thai Christians to grow in their faith and the non-Christians to be moved forward in their understanding of who Jesus Christ is. It was a very fruitful time as there were six new believers by the end of the retreat and many Christians who were encouraged to seek Christ daily and have Him use their lives to reach others. We were reminded of how privileged we are to be a part of such profound things, the ministry of reconciliation.

Now, we are getting settled back in, enjoying the Thai summer break. We will have a staff retreat at the end of April and then the campus schedule picks back up in May. Please continue to pray for us. Pray that our language acquisition will continue so that we can build and deepen relationships for the sake of the gospel. Maranatha!