"I'm a Christian!"

 We had a baptismal service recently at our church. The boys have been to services like these before, but this time they paid closer attention. More so I think because of their age and also they have become closer to some of the kids at church and 2 of their friends were baptized.

Our boys know and I believe have understood the plan of Salvation for a while. We have been waiting for the Holy Spirit to work in their hearts and reveal it to them personally. Silas was talking with Jimmy about how all the people that were getting baptized were telling everyone that they were Christians now. Silas said, "Yeah, Christians like me." Jimmy replied, "No you're not, you aren't a Christian until you personally decide to ask Jesus to save you." Silas was surprised and kind of disturbed. He said, "What?! but I go to church."

 He kept talking with Jimmy about how he wanted to be a Christian too. In our kids SS class that evening in church, I had my big Salvation cross, where we go through God's plan. Silas paid extra attention and asked if we could talk about that cross in English when we got home. 

That night we talked with him some more and he said that he really wanted to ask Jesus to come into his heart and save him from his sins. He was so urgent. Well he did! Now I believe you become a Christian whenever you put your faith in Jesus' death and resurrection. Could Silas have already been at that point for some time? Absolutely, but I'm glad that he has this specific time where he verbalized that he personally decided that he wanted to be a Christ follower. 

Then all day Monday Silas kept telling Jonah that he needed to ask Jesus to save him! I think it was a Andrew going to tell Peter thing! I loved that. If it is real for you than of course you want your brother in on it too! Well, no one rushes Jonah to do anything. (He is our strong willed child, and I love his passionate personality.) Jonah said that when he was ready he would. 

So that night, during our night night routine, it was Jonah's turn to lead the prayer. He didn't tell anyone he was going to, but he asked Jesus to save him too, out loud, in front of everyone (which isn't like Jonah)! He was so happy when he opened his eyes. 

 I love his little face! We all got SO excited!  

Then we called the grandparents. Silas got on the phone and says, "Hey MaG, I'm a Christian!" Jonah and Silas were both eager to tell their grandparents the news. The funniest part though was when Silas was talking to G. He said, "G, I'm going to heaven... well not now, but one day. And I'll see Zoe!" That was G's dog that recently passed away. 

 

We have spent a lot of time talking about how the Holy Spirit lives inside them, which is really neat now, because I see Him at work in their hearts. They are very present and real about things having to do with God, which helps me understand better the works of the Spirit that usually get described abstractly. I want to stay as sensitive as my boys.  

I am so thankful for our Savior who has given all of us hope. He has given us a present and a future.  and so much to rejoice over together!

A $90 Flying Lesson

Last night after church we had finished cleaning everything up and had stopped to chat just a little more before loading up the kids in the truck. Jimmy and I were in the sanctuary and Jonah and Silas were in the kitchen (attached to the sanctuary) playing with some other children. A couple weeks ago in one of the mens' meetings Jimmy had encouraged the dads to be more intentional in teaching their children about God and pastoring their families. One way was that they were supposed to start memorizing scripture together. He had passed out little booklets he had made of Psalm 23 and had encouraged them to read it every night together as a family and they would have it memorized in a week or two. Well, one of the 3 year old girls in our church was reciting Psalm 23 to me when I heard Silas start crying in the other room. I turned around for a second and saw that he had fallen, but he had gotten up and I figure he would walk it off. (I know that sounds horrible, but I didn't want to interrupt the little girl and Silas is my kid who is kind of like the "boy who cried wolf" when it comes to weeping over booboos.)

Well when she finished Silas' cries started getting worse and I got up to go check on him. Really only seconds had passed, but there was blood squirting everywhere!!!! SO much blood. There were puddles on the floor.  He was grabbing his chin. First I checked his mouth and thankfully there was no blood inside. Then I saw the gaping hole on his chin, still squirting blood. I ran to the car to get a wet wipe to put pressure on it. It soon stopped. Poor Silas was in a lot of pain. He said, "Mama I tried to fly, why didn't you catch me?" Man! Killing me! 

Jimmy had been talking too and like me initially didn't think it was anything serious until Jonah ran and told him that his brother had jumped off of a chair and hurt himself. 

We quickly loaded up the car and headed to Santa Elena (20 min away). We knew his chin needed stitches because the skin was split so far apart. I let him ride in my lap (here it's legal, but my kids usually use car seats...  I was experiencing some mom guilt though). 

{Silas' face says it all}

He had stopped crying and was pretty calm. We tried to prepare him with what was about to happen. We told him he would get a shot to numb his chin so that a doctor could sew it up. We tried to make it sound super cool but told him it would hurt. 

Silas told us more of the story too. He said that there was a little girl jumping off the tables in the kitchen. He said that she was teaching him how to jump. Then without hitting on this lesson too hard the boys and I had a talk about how just because someone else is doing something we need to make the decision for ourselves if doing what they are doing is smart or stupid... because sometimes doing something stupid can hurt really bad! 

If you would have asked me a year ago who would get stitches first I would have put my money on Jonah, but he has mostly grown out of his clumsy stage and usually makes pretty good decisions when it comes to weighing the risks. Silas, my very social child, on the other hand can be led astray very easily... we need to work on that! 

Jimmy was calling our pediatrician on the way there, but he wasn't in Petén, so he called the surgeon that removed Jimmy stitches after his Gallbladder surgery. He kindly said that he would meet us at a clinic in Santa Elena. It was 9pm by this time. It just so happened to be the same clinic where I got to see Jonah and Silas' heartbeats for the first time... nastalgic! 

Silas was worried about his "birthday shirt". Jonah and Silas call these shirts that because they wore them for the first time at their birthday party. (Mommy later got all the blood out, so he's happy.)

Jonah noticed that Silas's blood had pooled in the shape of an "A". He thought that was super cool. Then we all decided that Silas was like Captain America, who also got a shot and that made him a superhero. 

Jonah and Eden were playing with our phones while we were waiting.  Jonah happen to see this photo below that I had taken and said, "Look at Silas eyes!!! He has powers!!!!"

 Jimmy and Silas are so cute together! I loved listening to Dada's pep talk. It worked!

Poor Silas. I thought he was only going to get one shot. When it was all said and done he ended up getting 5... right in his wound. I couldn't take photos of it because his weeping was so sad. His daddy had told him before it started that it was very important that he didn't move his head... and that little 4 year old, through all that pain, never moved once! I was so proud of him. I know it hurt, you could tell by the type of crying, but he was so sweet! He never ask the doctor to stop or wiggled or anything. He held both of his daddy's hands the whole time and stayed strong. 

They put the cloth over his face when they started the stitches. Silas kept talking to us and we tried to think of anything silly to talk about to keep him from dwelling on the pain. The numbing shots didn't work very well. Every now and then Silas would stop talking and whimper in pain. I don't think there was any anesthesia for the last two stitches. He is like his mama. Numbing shots never work on me either. My mouth goes numb about an hour after I leave the dentist... epidurals are worthless. Anyway I felt like a liar, we had told him the stitches part wouldn't hurt. 

For the last two stitches Jonah stopped playing with my phone and covered his ears. He couldn't listen to his brother being in pain. 

It took 6 stitches to close it up. 

I am so thankful for this very kind doctor who came in late to help us! He was so nice and great with Silas. Here is Silas showing off his big boo boo:

 We all decided that the best medicine for such a boo boo was ice-cream! So that's where we headed next! It was a traumatic even for all of us, so it helped to cheer us up!

In 6 days he has to go back to get the stitches taken out. We have already warned him that it is going to hurt. Please pray for Silas to have just as much courage the second time!

I am SO grateful to God for keeping Silas safe and providing such a good doctor. I'm thankful that other than his chin and a bruised knee, my child did a face plant on concrete and didn't have any other damage. He might even end up with a pretty cool scar with a great story to go with it. 

So that's Silas' $90 flying lesson. Lesson learned: he can't fly. 

My Poor Bug Bitten Babies

It is so hard to seal your house here. We are fighting a mosquito battle... and we are losing! I spray my kids each night when they get out of the shower. Right now I think California Baby Bug Spray works the best. It doesn't have any DEET in it, which is good since we use it every day and my kids sleep with it on. I don't spray their faces however.

My kids' faces look awful. I tried to get a photo of Eden's face this morning. She was crying about not getting a pancake fast enough at breakfast. You can see the tear in her eye. Then she got a pancake and realized I was taking her picture and looked at me with a big smile and said, "Cheese!" Silly girl! 

My poor babies' faces are covered in bug bites. Two metal workers welded our last screen in yesterday and now we have a lot of caulking to do. We need to find some weather stripping too and then get some spray foam for other cracks. 

We are setting off some bug bombs today we brought back from the States and leaving for 4 hours. Today is our 9 year wedding anniversary, so we are headed to Santa Elena for a lunch together. Our baby sitter is on a trip to the States, so the kids are coming on our date too... we like them a lot, so that's ok! Plus this is a perfect time for the bug bombs!

Please pray we solve this problem. This many bites makes me worried about more Dengue. 

Along for the Ride

MK's don't get to choose their childhood, but it is one like no other.

{Eden in a fellowship hall after one of our meetings} 

 Being away from home for two months is hard on anyone, but for a kid it can be even harder when you can't really understand when you will get to go BACK HOME. You miss your bed, your room, your toys, your friends, your food, your church, your schedule, your place to feel safe and secure. 

Suddenly you're surrounded by gringos. Haha! And a whole new set of cultural rules and boundaries... like no peeing in the bushes. (That may or may not have happened a couple of times.) I think overall MK's are pretty resilient. They are a special breed. I am so thankful for my super spectacular kids who are more than along for the ride, they are bravely making their own waves! 

They have had some pretty cool experiences on furlough so far:

Their Papa worked it out to where they got to drive a train... a real one! They were thrilled!!! 

{Ready to get on the BIG choo choo!}

They drove it backwards and forwards, blew the horn and rung the bell. 

I have a video of them both driving it and they have watched it over and over again! Can you tell by their faces how excited they were?!

While we were over at my aunt and uncles house they got to ride this awesome zip line in their backyard!

My boys are so brave!

Then my sweet aunt and uncle invited us back over to ride their boat and jet skis. The boys loved that too!

Riding with Jonah and Silas was a little bit stressful for mommy and daddy, just because we didn't want to dump them in the river! But, we loved sharing the experience with them. Jonah would say, "Faster, Mama!" 

We were both in hoddies because it was COLD!

I can't leave out the potty bus! That was a fun filled 2 weeks!

We got to go to the creation museum while we were traveling around the country on the potty bus.

Besides these cool dinos, we got to ride a camel!

The boys got a kick out of that!

After we turned the potty bus back in we hit the road again and got to spend several days with Pastor Andy and his wonderful family this past weekend! They live on a couple acres and have a zip line in their backyard too. Jonah and Silas didn't even hesitate when asked if they wanted to do it. I think it is because they liked the zip line at my uncle's house so much. 

For this one they wore a harness. It went between their legs, so there was no way they were falling out of it. 

Can you see Silas in the trees?!

Their next door neighbors had a mini 4 wheeler that they let the boys drive. They were wild on that thing! 

Eden stuck with the tricycle!

Monday they got to see Robbie's plane. We had been trying to explain to them what a little big plane was. Robbie has helped Jimmy with several of his farming projects for the institute, but this was the first time that we had gotten to see his farm and everything he has going on. 

Those are loose bees that flocked to a new queen, starting their own hive. It was neat to see in person. Bees are the next trial Jimmy wants to start at the institute.

I think the boys' favorite part about the plane was talking to each other on the headsets!

They also got to drive the biggest tractor they had ever seen!

Then Tuesday Pastor Andy took Jimmy and the boys up in his plane!

I think Silas turned a little green, but he would never admit it. They loved it!

So did you catch all that? So far they have ridden/driven a

train

zip line

boat

jet ski

potty bus

camel

4-wheeler

tractor

little big plane

We are so thankful for all the kindness we have received along our furlough travels. Everyone has been so sweet to our children. They have had a blast so far!

A Beautiful Day!

We got up about 5:30 in order to make it to the other side of Petén in time for an inaugural service. I came into the kitchen about 6:00 kind of stressed saying to Jimmy that I was really sorry, but I thought I was going to be the last one ready. On really early mornings like this Jimmy usually makes breakfast - blueberry muffins in the shape of a train - in order to give me time to pack all the kids' stuff (like food, extra clothes, etc.) 

The boys love picking their train cars, it's a special treat. Well... Silas sensed that I was stressed when I came into the kitchen and he said, "You pretty Mommy, luv you." That kind of turned my day around!

The village of Tesuluclan 2 was having an inaugural service for their new church building along with their first baptismal service. This village was reached with the Gospel for the first time back in May. Domingo was the first person to visit this village after they called into the radio asking for someone to come tell them more about God. In August the Daytona team held another outreach there. They also gave money for the boards for the walls to build a church building... 2,000 feet of wood. Here is that building:

The guys painting the sign were laughing because they were embarrassed I was taking their picture! They did a great job painting the sign. I thought the church members did a great job painting the whole building too. They seems to take a lot of pride in their church!

The name of the church is The Miracles of Christ Baptist Mission. A church is referred to as a mission until it can support it's own pastor. This church currently has a mother church in another town who helps it out. 

Eden is still at the age where she doesn't mind getting past around if she can still see her mommy.

I heard the words "bow" and "baby doll" of lot that day. That is what everyone calls Eden here with her chubby cheeks and blue eyes - "baby doll" (pura muñeca!) In Kekchi they just say "muñec". Everyone is so sweet to my babies.

The church members had planned a big supper for everyone. This was their kitchen. 

They prepared "Poch" or tamalitos instead of trying to make 100's of tortillas to feed that many people. It would have been impossible to keep that many tortillas warm and nobody likes a cold corn tortilla! Tamalitos are steamed wrapped banana leaves filled with corn meal. Here they are cooking on the fire:

The tamalitos were a side to go with the beef... very fresh beef!

We arrived right after they slaughtered the bull. If I had seen him wag his tail, I wouldn't have been able to take these photos, but since we never met, I'm cool with it. 

They chopped the rib cage up among other things. I got to watch as they carried it off, piece by piece. 

They were so kind to us when we arrived with Domingo and his family. They treated us like special guests. They prepared us lunch. It was eggs and beans with dark corn tortillas. 

Purple tortillas are my favorite. They don't taste anything at all like the traditional corn tortillas here. The dark corn seed is hard to find or Jimmy would have planted some this last season at the institute. I want to find somewhere to by the dried corn so that I can make my own cornmeal... it isn't very common. I think this would make excellent corn bread. The regular corn meal sold here has a flavor I don't particularly care for... I know it's horrible. I feel bad for not liking something so attached to the country's identity. 

{Silas excited about lunch!}

The eggs and beans were so good. They had some type of seasoning on them that made them absolutely delicious! My boys liked them too! 

Right before it was time to walk down to the river it started to rain. 

The rain turned all the steep walking paths into sticky, slippery mud. I was holding E, and usually had one of the boys' hands as I very ungracefully made my way to the river. 

It was like a slip-n-slide made of mud and horse apples. I almost hit the ground several times. I could only imagine what the wet gringa looked like ankle deep is goop with her arms flailing in the air trying not to fall, which got me laughing... which made it even harder to balance.

Then I tried to take pictures while balancing, holding E and holding both the boys' hands to keep them from falling into the river! 

They had asked Jimmy to do the baptismal service. He was honored. 

It is really a beautiful scene. They sing hymns and choruses while people are being baptized. 

Everyone comes to the river to watch. It really is telling everyone in the village that you have put your faith in Christ and are starting a new life. 

16 believers were baptized that day!

Here is the line of people waiting to be baptized:

Jimmy prayed with each one in the water.

We were so thankful to get to be a part of such a special celebration!

Afterwards we met for prayer in the church building.

These girls came to sit next to Silas! He didn't appreciate it much.

We didn't stay for the evening service. It was several hours from our house and the service wouldn't have ended until after 10 for sure. Plus poor Domingo was very sick that day and he had traveled with us.

Before we left, they shared some of that bull with us! This tasted exactly like Jack Link's Teriyaki beef jerky. 

 The house where we ate was where the church use to meet before they had the building. 

They had beautiful visuals on the walls!

Please pray for the village of Tesuluclan Dos. Maybe one of our institute graduates will become the pastor of this church one day!