Muggle?

Wow...what a week. God has been so gracious to us! Everyone around us has been sick with strep, the flu, or some form of gunk! Miraculously we've managed to stay well. Thank the Lord!

Our time with our missionary friends was wonderful! Rich! Encouraging! Special! We had a blast and look forward to the next time they visit! They introduced us to a new adventure! And I think we're hooked...ever heard of Geocaching? Nope? Neither had we...and we had the BEST TIME! It's a treasure hunt! So, if you're a romantic, always searching for hidden treasure and hidden passages...well, this might be for you! So what is geocaching? It's searching for caches...all the info is available online. You join their website and you have access to coordinates and clues that lead you to a cache! There are hundreds in our city! We found three on Saturday! Our friends brought their GPS, they plugged in the coordinates and wrote down the clues and a hunting we went. It was SO FUN! MW found two of the treasures...all by herself...ok, maybe with a little help! One treasure was hidden beside a tree stump, another was hidden beneath "Old Glory" and yet another in a church parking lot! How cool and fun is that? You sign your user id and what you took from the cache and what you left. It was so weird to think that I drive near these places all the time and I had no idea there was something hidden there! Oh, and if you don't know about geocaching....you're called a "muggle." Crazy, huh? And so fun! We're going to join and start caching! (PS, FYI, about that bottom picture: MW picked out her own outfit...and those pink overalls are concealing the hot pink skirt she's wearing underneath! WoW!)

MW had the best time having missionaries with us! She and their youngest, V, watched a movie in bed on our portable dvd player - two different nights! It was precious! They curled up in MW's twin bed and snuggled in to watch! Their oldest, C, and I got to watch our own fun movie one night, too! Several nights we all were up talking and hanging out until midnight! Too fun! And they had some crazy stories! Like slugs under the toilet seat, a cow in someones kitchen! A gecko falling into someone's soup! Elephants and lions only feet from their tent! And taking the wrong kid to a town several hours away...too funny! Good thing they keep a sense of humor! And how neat to see their daughters' hearts for missions and the people they are serving. Very cool. Spending time with families like that changes my perspective. It's wonderfully refreshing! It's a HUGE blessing!

Let me explain the jeep/bride picture: MW conned their daughter V and a sweet neighbor into riding in the jeep while MW dressed up as a bride. Thank goodness for older girls who can steer!) They (MW, V, and our neighbor) made "perfume" from camilias and I'm not sure what else. All I know is that it was giving off a "lovely" scent this afternoon when MW pulled it back out...it must get better with age!

Today marks the one year anniversary of our little MW's first response to the prodding of the Holy Spirit. A year ago Dr. M had preached at our mission's conference. We'd made MW sit with us each night. At one point Dr. M said, "We are all either missionaries or mission fields." MW was moved to tears. She adamantly whispered to me that she did "not want to be either!" We promised to discuss it with her after the sermon. She was very interested in the missionary family who was staying with us and asked many questions about why they do what they do. Dr. M shared a story on Friday night about his aunt, who was killed for her faith, as a missionary, in the 70's. MW had more questions about this and about the people who killed this woman. "Did they have Jesus in their hearts?" The questions continued for the rest of the day. That night T took MW with him to grab dinner at Taco Bell. In the drive through line (of all the places!), without any prompting, MW told T that she wanted to ask Jesus to forgive her for her sins and to come into her heart. When they got home, MW ran across the room and jumped in my arms and declared, Mama, I a Christian and it gonna be hard!" I asked why Jesus had died on the cross, to which she replied, "to forgive my sins." I asked what sin is and she told me "when I disobey." So, we're eternally grateful to see God's mercy, faithfulness, and goodness in a child of the covenant and we look forward to what He has in store for her as He continues to draw her to Himself!

The highlight of this year's conference came for me on Sunday morning. As our guest preacher preached on "faith giving," MW looked up at me and whispered in my ear that she wants to give all the money she's saved and earned for her dress, to "the missionaries." T and I suggested she take a few days to pray about this. She's stated since then that she wants to give it all and that she "won't miss it. I promise. I will give it with a cheerful heart." So...we'll see what happens. Once again, I see things in her little heart that I wish were so profoundly true in my own heart.

And my youngest sister, A, called...she is having a boy. Wow. I can't wait to meet you, little man! My heart feels such a vast range of emotions...Romans 12:15 comes to mind. "Rejoice with those who rejoice, and weep with those who weep." The heart is an amazing thing! To my precious sisters, I love you both dearly!