Mother-Daughter Banquet

We glided down the Autobahn at about 90 miles an hour sharing our stories and catching up on news.

It was Maria and I heading towards the Mother-Daughter Banquet at the mission church in Bitburg, Germany. Alexis, my granddaughter, sat quietly in the back seat dressed up in her Sunday best.

We swung up and down mountains and straddled the Moselle River. Everything was greening as spring burst out everywhere. Slanted hillside vineyards glistened through the rain as German villages popped up in the crevices of valleys.

Soon, we arrived and saw the church on a winding cobblestone street of the little town of Bitburg. We entered and I found my name tag at a table and quickly went forward to fill my plate with brunch-style food. When I sat down, sitting next to me was an African-looking lady. She said she was from England, the Isle of Wight, and her name was Abigail. She spoke with a touch of British accent but something else was there too.

“Are you from Africa?” I whispered.

“Yes, from Central Africa originally. I married a man from England.”

“Aaah! I knew it! I just read a book about Africa, “The Leap”, and would love to visit there some day!”

“You would love to visit!” She got all excited. “I could get you there right now! I have friends and family there! They have a big house! They would love to have you!”

“Well, not right now!” I quickly retorted. “Someday!”

“Come to my house for tea and we can talk about it!” She exclaimed.

“There’s only one problem.”

“What?”

I explained to her that I lived an hour and a half away so that would be nearly impossible.  I gave her my email address and phone number and said she was welcomed to call me and we could talk about it further.

“Why did the Lord put me next to her?” I mumbled to myself.

I notice her hand was limp.

“What’s wrong there?” I asked.

“I had a stroke.” She said.

“How did that happen?”

“The devil attacked. He can attack anywhere at any time.”

“Yes, but God gives us grace to make it. “ I replied.

She nodded her head.

We then heard a short devotional by a missionary and afterwards, pictures were taken.

Later, I found Mrs. C the pastor’s wife. I knew she was heading back to the USA due to health problems.

“I’ve had five bypasses since I last saw you four years ago. Now, I can barely walk on this leg and it might have to be amputated. I don’t want to go back. I vowed I would die here first.”

“But you’re going back in two weeks.” I replied.

“That’s right. I still have two weeks.” She smiled through her tears.

I wanted to hug her at that moment, but she carrying a load of stuff. I prayed a silent prayer for her that the Lord would help her to get the strength to return.

Earlier, we had a contest and I won the centerpiece. Abigail could not participate because she was not a mom. I sensed her loneliness and, at the last minute, gave it to her. The Lord told me to do it.

She smiled and thanked me and limped to the door. She too had a bad leg.

And then we headed back home.

To be continued…

Twin Leaps

So now I’m sitting around the house “waiting on the Lord” and enjoying the Germany spring. Praying and listening to a California radio station over the internet, KNVBC, that has excellent, vintage Christian music on it.

We turned in our ID cards last week after a spree of buying stuff at the Commissary and the BX for the last time. Now, in a few days, we’ll be off our work permits and back on tourist visas for 90 days. We were upset with this, of course, and didn’t understand what the Lord was doing.

Meanwhile we took a trip to Simsheim to two huge museums to view the German military might of World War Two that is history now. It great being with the grandkids and we needed a few days away from our struggles to get a little perspective on the situation. God blessed us and the time together was a wonderful one of fun and fellowship that all of us needed.

 The next day, we visited a water-operated polishing mill where they processed gems and saw how hard it was to produce a precious stone. The rock had to be held right next to a strap rotated by gushing water and the friction refined it. Mmmm…sounds like us and our trials. Maybe the Lord was trying to tell us something.

When we returned home, I said a little prayer. “Please, Lord, lead me to read a book on my Kindle. I need something right now to help me through this.”

The Lord guided me to the perfect book and it was by someone I personally knew about 30 years ago. Lon Garber wrote this book called “The Leap” about his journey of faith with his wife Val as they headed to Namibia in Africa. Their story so paralleled ours, I could hardly believe it. We both stepped out in faith as God provided the way for us. When they arrived in Namibia in December (same time of the year as we did), it was the middle of summer there. Of course, with us, it had to be in the middle of a cold winter… However, it was back in 2003 so they had a rough time as Americans with the Iraq war going on. They had trouble with their visas because of it. The government didn’t trust them. We’ve had our status revoked too so we know how that feels. I’m still reading and it is encouraging my heart as I see this couple live out their faith.

In our situation, there’s a light at the end of the tunnel. Bob went for a job interview arranged by a good brother at our church. It looks promising. The whole mission church has rallied around us. They all want us to stay because they know we love them and will work wherever we are needed. We have to keep believing in God’s guidance.  He’s certainly teaching us to trust Him.

If the Lord wills it, we will stay.

It all depends on Him.

Thank you for all your prayers!

 

 

Merven

Of all the people I met there, I miss Merven the most.

She was this sparkly-eyed petite three-year-old who became my instant friend. I asked her how old she was when I first met her on the cold playground one day and she held out three fingers on each hand.

“Six?” I asked.                                                                                   

“No, silly. Three.”

“Well, then, only hold up three.” I retorted.

She told me also that her little sister was one, her name and her mom’s age and name. She was pretty smart for a three-year-old, I thought.

We played on the logs pretending they were balance beams. She said she loved Dora the Explorer and sang the Dora song. I pushed her around the playground in a wagon and then on a tricycle.

I was sad to say good bye to her that day. I was gone for a whole week playing with other kids at the Child Care Center; this time it was with the two year olds. The weather actually got warm and we enjoyed digging in the sandbox.

When I returned to the older kids the next week, I was delighted to see Merven again. We played together again and I pushed her again in the wagon.

“I love gymnastics!” She exclaimed barely able to pronounce the word.

Then, I saw another day care work put kids on a pole and they twirled down. It looked like fun. He held them as they descended to the ground. He told me it “gave them confidence” so I wanted to try it with Merven.

I held her as she twirled down. She did fine the first two times but with the third attempt my hands slipped off her and she accidentally plummeted to the ground. She cried as her face hit the pavement.

Fortunately, she did not get hurt because the pavement was this soft, plastic material that caved as she hit it. However, it did shake me up badly and I whispered a prayer for God’s help.

We went back to playing again and I felt as carefree as a child. But the sun had gone behind the clouds and the cool wind was blowing so I was glad when we finally went back inside.

Deanna, the main teacher in the room put on some soothing sea sounds. I went to comfort each child by softly rubbing their back and getting them to go to sleep for their naps.

I sat down on a small couch, closed my eyes for a few minutes and thought of the wonderful beaches of Florida.

Suddenly, a lady ran in and accused me of sleeping. Fifteen minutes later I was fired. That was the end of my day care career.

We may be going back to Florida if my husband or I don’t find a job within 3 months; that’s the rule around here though it doesn’t make sense. Then again, none of this makes sense.

 I prayed for the Lord’s will that morning.

I don’t understand why it happened the way it did but it was His will.

His ways are truly mysterious, yet I still praise Him.

And the sun came back out that afternoon.

Hirtenfpad 11

No, this title has nothing to do with a sequel to “Ocean’s 11”. It is the name of a street in Kindsbach, Germany.

Saturday we came back from food shopping and were sitting at the table finishing our lunch. We were still living in the attic of our church, which we have now officially joined, and after two weeks, it felt like an eternity. Bob had a small, local English newspaper in his hand and had circled one of the ads in the Rental section.

“Here is the perfect place for us!” He exclaimed as he took the last bite of his tuna sandwich. “It’s right over in the next village from here!”

“You mean next to Landstuhl?”

“Yeah, it’s in the little village of Kinesbach so it can’t be too far away. It’s got all the features we’ve been looking for and is 130 square meters.”

Now you may wonder what square meters are. It means the same as square yards which is about 1300 square feet.

“Wow!” I said. “That’s a big apartment! What else does it have?”

“It has three bedrooms, living room, one and one half baths and an eat-in kitchen. It also has two balconies.”

“Okay, and is the price right?”

“Yes, it’s reasonable.”

It was about the price of a two bedroom apartment back home.

“Okay, why don’t you call the number and see what happens?”

He called and got a German answering machine and hung up.

“Nobody there! It figures.”

“Try again and leave a message,” I suggested. “Maybe they will call back.”

He did that and, you guessed it, they called back!

He got all the info and we drove there. It was only 2.2 kilometers away or about a mile and a half. The people were prompt to show up and let us look at the place. We liked it a lot and shook hands. In Germany, a handshake still is as bidding as a contract.

The apartment is on the third floor and overlooks the village. Cobbled-roof houses greet you when you look out the bedroom window. There is also a balcony there. From the other balcony, off the kitchen, a mountain looms right in front of you framed in snow.

Of course it has all the modern conveniences except for no closets. You have to buy your own. They’re called shrunks.  Also, it has only a tiny little refrigerator equivalent to the small ones you see in classrooms. You have to buy your own “American-style” freezer because Germans don’t freeze food much.

And the name of the apartment is: Hirtenpfad 11! It is a real answer to prayer! God is so good!

What does Hirtenpad mean? In German, we learned later that it means: path of the shepherd.

And I know what Shepherd that is...

Excommunication and Membership

“We excommunicated TWO members this week!” Bob told the Pastor.

                “Two members?” His left eyebrow rose in curiosity as he paused to listen.

                “Yeah, two church mice are history! One was kicked out of the building from a garbage can and one was found dead on the kitchen floor. I guess the rat poison worked.”

                The Pastor’s frown turned to a smile. “Good, good!” He chuckled.

Yesterday was a great day in the House of the Lord with us joining the church as new members.

Bob also shook the Pastor’s hand and said: “Well, you have gotten four new members this week!”

“How’s that?” he asked.

“We joined and two new baby girls were born too!”

He laughed at that one because it was true. It was a very fruitful week for the little mission church.

Now it’s Monday night. Tomorrow I start my new job and today every painful memory seemed to kick in of all the jobs that I didn’t like and that didn’t like me. I hope that my new job will not be too disappointing. I also hope that I will be fruitful there and like it to a certain degree. My fears and doubts I am sure are all unfounded.

Still, the devil knows my weak points and he attacks me there.

Did I mention our car was in the shop too with a mysterious leak in the suspension somewhere? Bob heard a hissing sound when he filled it up with gas and now it lists to the right side and is so low you feel every bump as you go down the road. So it was dropped off today and we have to borrow a car tomorrow for my first day.

All this has gotten me in a little bit of a blue mood. Our house is being short-sold. The German government wants to speak to us about our intentions of staying here. I need SOFA status and a new ID or we go back. I should get it this week with my new job. Then, should I cancel our return tickets? Yes, because we are living by faith and that means not looking back or at the circumstances but looking to God for help and salvation. He is our rock and our defense no matter how dark the storm…

I guess our backs are against the wall. But like the old hymn says: “Oh for grace to trust Him more…” And another more contemporary song that says: “If we never had a problem, we wouldn’t go to Him to solve ‘em. We wouldn’t know what faith in God can do.”

So, I will “trust in the Lord with all my might and lean not on my own understanding” and believe he is going to see us through…like He always has!

“Lord, help us to trust in You completely no matter what! We know your timetable is perfect and your way is perfect. Help us to walk humbly with You and wait patiently for your help! Thank, you Lord Jesus, for the answer and we love and worship you. Amen.”

And you can’t be negative or have self-pity when you’re living in a church…

 

Another Little Mouse

One day, Bob walked into the house and announced: “We found a place that will fix the car!”

We went down to ACE glass and got the back windshield fixed. Next, I had to drive it for the first time and follow Bob back to Bobby’s place where we have been staying for a while. You see, I was hired for my job but the paper work takes about two months. And without “SOFA” status, the special ID you get, we would not be able to stay in Germany. So we were still waiting.

I had just read in a book about the need for married couples to get away occasionally. I realized  we needed a break and so did Bobby and Maria.

Bob came to me soon after I read this with the solution:

“How ‘bout living for a few weeks in the Church before you get “SOFA’d”? That way, we can sort through our stuff at the Church and at the same time, have some peace and quiet?”

So we moved into an apartment consisting of two rooms and a bathroom. It was quiet at first. However, Bob thought he heard the squeak of a mouse in the ceiling.

Meanwhile, for meals, we had to use the kitchen downstairs. On the first day, I was getting our meal ready when I heard a yell from Bob. I turned just in time to see this mouse scamper across the auditorium just outside the door of the kitchen. It ran into the other side of it where the dishwasher and the large pantry was.

Of course, I screamed now, too.  But that was the last time we saw it that night.

The next morning, I turned into that room to get some dishes and it was quiet at first. All of a sudden, I heard scratching noises coming from the wastebasket. A good sized mouse with no tail was trying to hop out of it! I quickly threw a serving tray on top of it and yelled for Bob. He came running and brought it outside and let it go free.

Right after breakfast, I heard a squeak and another mouse ran out of the cupboard and when it saw me it panicked and ran right into a dark corner and disappeared.

“Church mouse!” I called out. “Be respectful in God’s house!”

We went and told Bro. Mike. He gave us two mousetraps. One was a new-fangled one that when Bob tried to set it, snapped right on his finger. The other one was an old-fashioned one that we put some peanut butter on for bait.

So now it's war! While I’m sitting here in the apartment, I can hear one of them running around in the ceiling over our heads. There must be a whole family of ‘em.

We have plenty of “food and raiment” and I am trying to be content. We don’t know where we will live next. But I’m trusting God to supply our need.

If He provides for the lilies and the sparrows He will provide for us. Even us church mice.

And we whisper to the ceiling: “Go to sleep, Mickey!” and “Be quiet, naughty mouse!” And hope those mouse traps work.

 

A Trip to Globus

“Are we going out, Pappa?” Robert, the ever-precocious 8 year old, looked up at us and smiled.

“Yes, we’re going to visit Globus. Do you want to come? You can be our human GPS.”

“Yeah, Pappa, of course!”

We said good-byes to the rest of the family and headed out to the car.

“Isn’t Globus like a Super Wal-Mart?” I asked.

“The German equivalent of one,” Bob said as we drove up the hill. The street looked icy and snowy. Suddenly, our car was sliding backward instead of forwards!

“Looks like this isn’t going to work!”

Bob began to back up the car and turned downhill instead.

“Slippery out here today,” he mumbled.

I breathed a sigh of relief as I realized we wouldn’t hit a wall or a gate.

“Well, Bobby, show us where to go.” Bob said as he glanced in the rearview mirror.

“Turn left.”

“No, that’s the wrong way! We should turn right here.”

“But we should go to the Globus that has the Saturn in it!”

“What?” I thought. “The one with a car in it?”

“No,” Bob repeated firmly. “That one is too far away. We are going to the one just before Kaiserslautern.”

Next thing we knew, we had made several wrong turns thanks to Robert. We soon had whizzed past Globus, after going through a military base and had to make a U-turn. A light flashed in our faces.

“We just got our pictures taken!”

“What?” I asked.

“We’ll be getting a ticket in the mail! I’m going too fast for the speed limit. Even if you’re one or two kilometers above you’ll get one. But we won’t pay it and neither will Bobby. We’re not the owner of the car.”

We were silent the rest of the way trying not to lose it with our little guide in the back seat.

Finally we arrived at our destination and we were awed by a humongous store that had at least three restaurants, hair and nail salons, an eye glass place, a large cheese bar and a giant bakery. The rest of the place was filled with all kinds of consumer goods of every type and description. They even had an American aisle with a red, white and blue banner on it that had all our favorite foods: boxed mac and cheese, ketchup, mayonnaise, peanut butter, taco kits etc. We bought a few groceries as we walked down the aisles.

Bob grabbed a bratwurst on brochen which is their equivalent to a hot dog for one euro and I took a sample bite. He then bought a hot pretzel for 50 cents euro for Robert.

Then we left to go home.

“Did you have fun?” I asked Robert.

“Yes, but I’ll pay you 12 dollars to take me to Saturn right now!”

“What is Saturn?” I finally asked.

Bob sounded irritated. “It’s an electronics store. No, son, and you can’t bribe us! Your dad can take you there.”

He kept pleading with us and we both had a good laugh saying no.

We enjoyed our trip but were glad to get back home again.

Who ever said Europe only had sidewalk cafes and small storefronts?

And there’s one in France, too. It’s only a 45 minute drive. We’ll have to go there next time…