Back to "real" life and a Joy Dare
Sigh.
It's been a rough few days for me and I'm a little blue. Saying good-bye to my parents, starting back into same ole normal routine, feeling super tired and not really knowing why, an ear infection that won't go away, cultural/language frustrations that leave me feeling totally out of my element, struggling to build and maintain relationships over cultural stumbling blocks, HOT days with little relief, kids who don't feel like doing anything this Monday, the fact that I STILL can't get flour or butter....these things are conspiring to steal my joy.
But I won't let it. Because you know what? God placed me here - He gave me these kids and these responsibilities and these relationships in this place for a reason. Probably more to grow me than to help the people living here. And I want to embrace God's best for my life - even if it means a few rough days as I struggle to get a grip on my emotions and place my trust firmly back in My Father's Hands.
I suppose we've all been a little on the whiney side. Something about knowing a real break and vacation is just around the corner leaves us all a bit more on edge....like we just. can't. take. any. more. Yes, it is time for a break! Oh, the very thought of a break from heat and language struggles and cultural blunders and misunderstandings and constant cooking makes me want to dance a happy dance!
But until that break comes, we need to do one thing. We need to be grateful anyway.
Sean has been teaching the girls (and me too) the importance of gratitude - of being thankful, even when we don't feel like it. We've been practicing listing off the things we're thankful for...funny how that list just grows and grows the more we take the time to think about it. Truth is, we do have so much to be thankful for!
I have read Ann Voskamp's blog for several years off and on and I know she published a book about this very sort of thing, though I've yet to read it. I've always loved her lists and, today, I think it's a good thing to practice. Low and behold, I went to her blog and discovered that she's started a Joy Dare for 2012.
So, what am I thankful for this muggy ninth day of January day in Indonesia?
25. the perfect ring on my left hand from a man I love a million times more than when I first received it from him nearly 12 years ago!
26. my neighbor's fragrant and blooming gardenia bushes and the blooms she brings me to grace my kitchen shelf
27. the gift of sitting next to my parents on a hard, dirty floor in the middle of Borneo on Christmas Day (and a lot of other great places I got to share with them while they were here).
It's been a rough few days for me and I'm a little blue. Saying good-bye to my parents, starting back into same ole normal routine, feeling super tired and not really knowing why, an ear infection that won't go away, cultural/language frustrations that leave me feeling totally out of my element, struggling to build and maintain relationships over cultural stumbling blocks, HOT days with little relief, kids who don't feel like doing anything this Monday, the fact that I STILL can't get flour or butter....these things are conspiring to steal my joy.
But I won't let it. Because you know what? God placed me here - He gave me these kids and these responsibilities and these relationships in this place for a reason. Probably more to grow me than to help the people living here. And I want to embrace God's best for my life - even if it means a few rough days as I struggle to get a grip on my emotions and place my trust firmly back in My Father's Hands.
I suppose we've all been a little on the whiney side. Something about knowing a real break and vacation is just around the corner leaves us all a bit more on edge....like we just. can't. take. any. more. Yes, it is time for a break! Oh, the very thought of a break from heat and language struggles and cultural blunders and misunderstandings and constant cooking makes me want to dance a happy dance!
But until that break comes, we need to do one thing. We need to be grateful anyway.
Sean has been teaching the girls (and me too) the importance of gratitude - of being thankful, even when we don't feel like it. We've been practicing listing off the things we're thankful for...funny how that list just grows and grows the more we take the time to think about it. Truth is, we do have so much to be thankful for!
I have read Ann Voskamp's blog for several years off and on and I know she published a book about this very sort of thing, though I've yet to read it. I've always loved her lists and, today, I think it's a good thing to practice. Low and behold, I went to her blog and discovered that she's started a Joy Dare for 2012.
So, what am I thankful for this muggy ninth day of January day in Indonesia?
25. the perfect ring on my left hand from a man I love a million times more than when I first received it from him nearly 12 years ago!
26. my neighbor's fragrant and blooming gardenia bushes and the blooms she brings me to grace my kitchen shelf
27. the gift of sitting next to my parents on a hard, dirty floor in the middle of Borneo on Christmas Day (and a lot of other great places I got to share with them while they were here).
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