Tuesday, November 23, 2010

Thanksgiving Reflections

Hi Everyone,
Well.....there we are - in living color! Grin!
I just got back from my Tuesday morning Bible Study on I Peter - so much to think about. For all of us women, it seemed that the verse that spoke to each of us the most in Chapter 3 was in verse 4: "......with the imperishable quality of a gentle and quiet spirit, which is precious in the sight of God." A gentle and quiet spirit which is eternal and precious to God - what does that look like? We talked about that for a while and came to the conclusion that we thought it meant to "be content in all situations" - to have our total being so immersed in our inheritance as God's daughter (son) - that we can have that gentle and quiet spirit regardless what is going on around us, whether it be persecution, ridicule, abuse or even a different culture. I think we all needed to hear that from the Lord this morning - at least, I KNOW, I needed to hear that this morning.

We see God's purposes so clearly lately as to why we were to come to Nigeria. We love the people we work with and the people in the village and the children - so many children. But...there's no easy way around saying this - this is a totally different culture with totally different ways of doing things. In dealings with others in this culture, much of the time it can be soooo very difficult. Crist and I are finding that the Lord is dealing with our sin nature like never before, since we have been living here. Oh I can "bite my tongue" in most situations, but underneath there is anger and self-righteousness. In Verse 9 of I Peter 3 it says, ".....but giving a blessing instead (instead of an insult); for you were called for the very purpose that you might inherit a blessing." This encourages me this morning, because most of the time it convicts me!! We want so much to be a blessing to others - to give a blessing! (but it can be so hard!) Please pray with us for a "gentle and quiet spirit". We are so THANKFUL TO THE LORD that He continues to refine and shape us (even in our winter years).

There are NO SIGNS of Thanksgiving here in Nigeria. Even many of the foreign missionaries are Canadians, Dutch and German. But there are a few of us Americans and we're celebrating on Thursday evening - gathering at the ministry center to celebrate our thankfulness to God. We're each bringing different food items and instead of a turkey we're having four large chickens that we'll bake. I suspect we will each think of our family members that are in the states and we will miss them all - but I know we will be sharing all the many blessings that the Lord has graced us with. Crist and I are thankful for:
A LOVING FAMILY
THE BODY OF CHRIST THROUGHOUT THE WORLD
GOD'S WORD CONTINUING TO SPEAK TO US
SALVATION/HOPE OF ETERNITY
GIGGLING TOGETHER
LIZARDS THAT ARE EVERYWHERE HERE (they really are cute!)
HOT FUDGE SUNDAES (which by the way, we haven't had in over six months - Yikes!)
WONDERFULLY COOL NIGHTS FOR SLEEPING
ALL OF YOU DEAR DEAR FRIENDS
(and last, but not least - the beautifully bump-free, paved roads in the U.S.)
HAPPY THANKSGIVING TO EACH OF YOU!!
We'll be blogging again on Friday! Be blessed - be thankful and chat with you soon!
In-joy,
Eileen and Crist

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