Silver Anniversary

25 years.
Over half of my life.
Not quite half of Stan's.

1 fun wedding day; 1 life changing car accident
2 jobs for Stan, one at a time, most of the time on B shift (evening)
3 houses, also one at a time
4 children currently aged 21, 19, 16, 13
5 dogs, one right now
6 cats with half of those living here now.
STOP!

I don't have time to come up with a full list of 25 things since our day is full of LAEP set construction & SR Library clean-up (yes, we are going two separate directions; life is full & blessed) so I'll just hit some biggies:

13 years in FL for Stan. The rest of us celebrate that milestone Memorial Day weekend > so that's half of our married life in FL.

16 years homeschooling with the end in sight; 4 years to go. It's strange even to imagine this ride being over.
Field trips and road trips and trips to the ER
We've been through droughts and floods and hurricanes (you may think I jest but it is true).

20 motor vehicles = cars, trucks, vans & motorcycles > not all road worthy, many having at some time to be dragged home from beside the road and Stan becoming much more familiar with their innerworkings than he desired. PTL for my handy mechanic!

25 years of God's faithfulness & blessing.

Lacking Wisdom

Teeth that is. And they are now lacking in Caleb's mouth since they were removed yesterday. All four. Yes, he was awake for the procedure. Yes, in describing some of the experience, he used the word "cool" > he is after all a teen boy.
He did not like the sounds amplified as was explained to him, and said the shots were the most painful part of the extraction.

A blessing was that he didn't have long to worry. We had an appointment scheduled on Wednesday afternoon for an evaluation with an oral surgeon. Stan had an early appointment with our dentist the same day. When I asked to borrow & bring Caleb's panoramic x-ray to his evaluation, the receptionist agreed then asked if I knew that the procedure could be done there if it were a simple extraction, as it was soon after deemed. I was thrilled since it is much closer to the house & in not such a congested area, plus they were able to do the surgery the next day so Caleb didn't have too long to ponder all the implications (surgery = pain, as does the lack of wisdom...).

So my long, lanky 16 year-old is camped-out on the couch with ice packs keeping his cheeks from chipmunking, pain meds are keeping the daggers of misery away, and I am offering soft foods to try to keep his strength up & so he doesn't lose too much weight.

And wisdom. Must encourage extra growth in that area. Always. For me too.

Psalm 90:12
Teach us to number our days aright, that we may gain a heart of wisdom.
Psalm 111:10
The fear of the LORD is the beginning of wisdom; all who follow his precepts have good understanding. To Him belongs eternal praise.
Psalm 3:13-14
Blessed is the man who finds wisdom, the man who gains understanding, for she is more profitable than silver and yields better returns than gold.
Proverbs 9:10
The fear of the LORD is the beginning of wisdom, and knowledge of the Holy One is understanding.

Reach the World for Jesus

Once a month my BSF group has a fellowship lunch. At yesterday's, one of the group members testified about being an international internet missionary.

An international internet missionary? What a cool concept! How often is the distance (or $/time to travel that distance) the deterent if you equate missions work with traveling to foreign soils? My friend specifically mentioned corresponding with someone from Germany. What if you could impact the world without having to get a passport or immunizations? You wouldn't even have to get out of your pajamas. Some of you wouldn't even have to get out of bed - but I'm naming no names...

Now, before you get all worked up about all the quacks out there, listen to the rest of what I have to say. (Yes, that means you must read out loud. LOL)

Global Media Outreach is a ministry of Campus Crusade for Christ > so not some new fly-by-night.

They have an intense interviewing process for those willing to minister to make SURE they know the Lord so will not lead seekers astray. Email addresses are protected by having the site as a "middleman". Potential answers are provided for you to assist in your ministry. You choose the amount of contacts desired. You are required to check your email daily.

Here is the note sent to me from my friend:
This website is looking for volunteers who would be willing to share the gospel w/ seekers over the internet. They provide free training & connect you w/ as many as you are comfortable in responding to. In 2009 alone, they had over 10 MILLION people come to Christ thru their websites!!

Here is a little more info from the site:
Global Media Outreach is a global ministry presenting the good news of Jesus Christ online 24/7. As a ministry of Campus Crusade for Christ, our goal is to stay on the cutting edge of global communication technologies to share Jesus and help believers grow in their faith worldwide.

The Vision
• Giving everyone on earth multiple opportunities to know Jesus
• Seeing hundreds of million receive Him and building them in the faith
• Connecting them to Christian movements everywhere

The Mission
Conducting relationship building, highly personal, gut-level ministry with people from all countries through thousands of GMO trained online missionaries.

The Opportunity
• Building the Church globally through on the ground partnerships with local congregations of all sizes
• Giving a person anywhere on earth the opportunity to know Jesus for only 10¢

Comments (as well as my tired brain recalls) from BSF group members:
"Who ever thought something like this would be possible?"
"God knew! Part of His plan to reach the world!"
"Jesus is coming soon!"

Amen! Come quickly Lord Jesus!