Remembering 3.11

"Blessed are those who mourn for they shall be comforted." Matthew 5:4

This verse was PERFECT during my morning quiet time with Jesus. Today is the 2nd anniversary of the "quake and tsunami".  My heart is full of prayers for Tohoku, this area of the world God placed us in 2009. May they find the only true comfort and peace from the God of all comfort. May God send those with His message of hope and good news. May He strengthen those who faithfully bring His heart to Japan.  May God use us in our last few months in Japan. 

Yesterday, Michael and I drove out to our beach. The rebuilding continues. Two years ago I was driving to Tokyo for a PWOC retreat with Erika and Susane. I cannot help but remember the calls to the kids, the silence after the quake, wondering what they were experiencing, the eight day wait as we tried to make our way back to Misawa, the aftershocks, the melt downs, the rumors,  the mission trips to pig farms and beaches, the shopping, assembling and delivering of relief kits, the silence of a base suddenly "voluntarily evacuated," the devastation, the deaths, the power outages, the exhaustion and cold,  the incredible outpouring of support from around the world, the walls between churches and communities beginning to crumble..I remember...I pray...I cry just a bit more....

Many who experienced this day have moved to new assignments. My guess is most of the rest of us who lived it will be pcsing within the year.  Yet those who lived this time together have an unbreakable connection....it was a bad time...it was a good time...we grew closer to each other, closer to our host nation,  and closer to Him. 

I hit the "tsunami" label button in the side bar and read our posts from those weeks. It seems surreal from this vantage point...but I want to remember.  God reopened some doors in our lives and ministry during that time of shaking and flooding. In the shaking; He pruned.  Rather than try to share more memories, I'll simply direct you to the labels in the sidebar.  I'll continue to remember...friends, quakes, tsunamis, working together....remembering...and praying. 

This is a good online article which allows you to see then and now photos of the damage. Click on a photo and it will fade to the current shot. 

 Below are the prayer prompts from CRASH Japan. 

1) Moving from Emergency Relief to Ongoing Recovery ~ we have been in crisis mode for two years and many are worn out. We need to keep going, but at a more sustainable pace.

2) Local Church Networks ~ pray for the Iwate 3.11 Network, Iwate Ministry Initiative and the Fukushima Christian Conference who have taken over our volunteer bases in those prefectures.

3) New Believers and Church Plants ~ pray for the new works that the Lord is doing in hearts and communities. There is a lot of openness to the gospel and Christians.

4) Miyagi CRASH ~ We are continuing the work in Miyagi for another year, serving communities through the local churches. Pray for volunteers to keep coming.

5) Pray for Christian leadership development throughout Japan to be ready for the next disaster. We are working with the Salvation Army to train a corps of disaster chaplains and create a network of local CRASH chapters.

Choosing Joy!
©2013 D.R.G.
~Coram Deo~
Living all of life before the face of God...

Driving Ban 2013 Lifted?

The day I eagerly dream of.....the end of the winter driving ban! Could it be?  We've had some days in the 40's and wind....the roads are clear....and I've been driving this week. 

Nolan had a doctor's appointment today, I needed to get some lab work done (again)....we didn't have to leave the house at 0700. We left at 0800....we ran errands and we CAME HOME before 1700!  I tried to talk the kids into going to Swan Park or the mall...but they wanted to play outside. 

Statistics show the average last snowfall in Misawa is in April....but I think this IS a good sign.  I'm so hopeful I filled the "Joy" up so she's ready to travel. Since no one wants to go driving...I'm going to settle in and read The Tehran Initiative, a series recommended by Tara over a year ago. Margin is a GREAT thing.  We'll have our yummy pizza tonight and strategize for the upcoming busy week. There are sure to be dinners and extra duties with our command chaplain in town.

Michael's love language is acts of service. He has driven me everywhere I needed to go without complaint - and the winter driving ban is out of love and concern for me and the children. He got tired of the calls from the Security Forces....as I drove off mountains in MT, into ditches in AK and into bushes here in Japan....I get that.  I have enjoyed the stolen moments for discussions as he has cheerfully driven me around...but I'm THRILLED to be able to just get out and GO.....and to buy groceries without a pre-planned list this afternoon.

Choosing Joy!
©2013 D.R.G.
~Coram Deo~
Living all of life before the face of God...

Everything's Cuter in Japan

It has made me smile for four years when I run into a kinder bus around town. They are so cute and come in a variety of "animals." I really must go find the "kinder bus" parking lot and get some shots of the variety....hard to catch them as I'm always trying to you know...drive...while I snap the photo. LOL

Choosing Joy!
©2013 D.R.G.
~Coram Deo~
Living all of life before the face of God...

A Tuesday in Lent

I woke up this morning with an odd prayer on my lips, "Abba, don't let them divert us from Beale," and I knew God has changed my heart.  It's really not all about a house, it's about knowing that Jehovah Jireh is going before us to provide for us and His body through this move to CA. We are content.  I never thought on 20 Feb I'd EVER be praying, "God, don't let them send us elsewhere." ::snort:: 

Michael has worked long nights yesterday and today (still not home)....had a suicide prevention workshop, lots of meetings and has begun all the paperwork to get our date for leaving Japan settled. We think it will be 16 July...and that still makes me very sad to contemplate...so I don't. How can you look ahead and deny it involves a goodbye? I don't know HOW, but hundreds of military families do it every year. ::grin:: 

We're living in a winter wonderland - a snow globe.  We've had a few days with temps in the 40's, the roads were clear so I drove today! A good thing.

Today was another PCOC (Protestant Children of the Chapel) day. We had fun with this activity. There are three paths - each leading to a little happy face or a frowning face at the end. The kids followed the path....and then were told, "You found it, you can now sit and cheer for others," or "Oops...wrong path, aren't you glad God forgives and lets us have a second chance? Why don't you try again?" It was fun - the kids mostly liked being on the wrong path and doing it again and again. 

This Lent season we chose activities that were "nearly daily." We wanted success and know from the past 40 days of activities takes us longer than 40 days to complete. We are working through Trail to the Tree, by Ann Voskamp. I find if I work through a devotional and meditate on it in the a.m. I'm ready to condense it so all the kids can benefit from it by evening. Click the previous link and scroll to the bottom for the free download. There are 17 readings - much easier for our family schedule than 40.  Each day's reading has a copy of art work which goes along with the passage read. We have laminated these and are making a Jesus Tree. 

We ordered this wreath at Christmas time from Ann's son. There is a carved figure of Mary on the donkey for Christmas.  It came right in time for Lent...so we are enjoying this new tradition for Lent first. 

We had tried Amon's Adventure last year and didn't make it through the book. There are 27 readings....we are past Palm Sunday now and we cannot seem to stop! This bothers Arielle as she thinks we should be reading Palm Sunday on Palm Sunday - while I see her point - we couldn't stop! ::snort:: 

Each night each of us shares at least one thing we're thankful for and one thing we'd like prayer for. Nolan and I both mentioned we were thankful for a nap/rest time this afternoon.....aren't times of rest after times of service blessed? I was encouraged that HE was also tired after the morning with our pre-schoolers....I had thought I may be aging. 

Arielle is showing Stacia how to embroider and they'll both continue to embroider the signatures on our Thanksgiving Tablecloth. 

Ah....Michael is home! A very full day. 

Choosing Joy!
©2013 D.R.G.
~Coram Deo~
Living all of life before the face of God...

Lentil Shepherd's Pie (Vegan opt)

I found this recipe at Simple Bites. I'll be trying more. 

Preheat oven to 375* 

Ingredients:

1 C lentils

2 lbs potatoes (or mixture of sweet and white)

2 T butter (coconut oil)

1/4 C milk (almond milk, soy milk)

1 tsp olive oil

1 small onion, chopped

1/2 tsp ground cumin

1/2 tsp dried thyme

1 tsp apple cider vinegar

1 T ketchup

5 drops of Tabasco sauce

1 C frozen corn

salt and pepper to taste

Nutritional Yeast (Opt)

garlic (opt)

Directions: 

Place lentils in pot, cover with an inch of cold water. Add a pinch of salt, cover and boil. Reduce heat and simmer for 20 min. Drain. 

Prepare mashed potatoes while lentils are cooking...season with butter, milk, salt, garlic as you desire. Set aside. 

Saute onion in olive oil until soft. Add cumin, thyme, cooked lentils, vinegar, ketchup, Tabasco sauce, 1/2 tsp salt and pepper.  Stir to combine. 

Add 1/2 C of water and bring to simmer. Cook for another five minutes, stirring often, to let the flavors mingle. 

Place seasoned lentils in a greased 9x13 pan (or medium casserole). Sprinkle with frozen corn. I also used Nutritional yeast. Add mashed potatoes and spread evenly. Bake for about 30 min., until heated through.  Serve hot. 

Four of us liked this...that's a hit for a plant based meal. We'd like it a bit saucier, I didn't have hot sauce and we still liked the flavor. I will add more veggies next time. 

1. Choosing Joy!

©2013 D.R.G.
~Coram Deo~
Living all of life before the face of God...

Messing With Her World

Michael called and needed the dimensions of the kennel...and its weight with Yukki INSIDE of it.....The start of the paperwork to get us on a plane in July. ::sigh:: 

Arielle and I found it really funny that Yuuki jumped into the kennel when she saw we were measuring and moving it.  We NEEDED her in there to weigh it....

 ...but Yuuki was taking no chances...she stayed in the kennel and watched us to be sure we weren't sneaking off again.

Choosing Joy!
©2013 D.R.G.
~Coram Deo~
Living all of life before the face of God...

Ninevah Revisited

If Jonah had just gone to Ninevah, instead of....

Some will remember our last PCS: our dog died, our van was stolen, our passports and luggage were stolen...Michael arrived in Japan a month before the children and I could get new birth certificates and passports to fly....base housing wouldn't offer us a home as our "minimum requirements" were more rooms than they had...we were in TLF for three months....You can read more about that if you click the "musing" tab and scroll down to the links under "PCS of a career". We LOVE Japan. We love our home. We love our neighborhood. We do not want to leave Japan. 

As another PCS approached we began to pray about the upcoming changes - as we always do and did last time. ::snort::  We've prayed we'll all LEAVE Japan TOGETHER, we'll all ARRIVE at our new assignment TOGETHER, the trip will be UNEVENTFUL, God would go before us and we would NOT have to spend three months in TLF....and could find a home for our BAH (housing allowance) and/or get base housing. We  are in downsizing, saving mode as we near retirement.  We have a 50th Wedding Anniversary to celebrate in OR on the 20th and a wedding to celebrate in TX on Aug 8th. We prayed we'd be able to find a home and maybe even unpack the week of the 22nd of July - before heading for TX. 

We wondered what in the world God was up to when our orders to Beale dropped.  Within hours we settled in our hearts God had a reason..... In fact, we've determined to Choose Joy - and have been posting one positive thing about the area each day which we're thankful for on Facebook. This week's reasons to Choose Joy on our way to CA. 

1. 21 degrees in Misawa this a.m. - 66 degrees at Beale AFB
2. Redwoods!
3. Closet possible Air Force base to Mom G.
4. Lots of Farmer's Markets with fresh produce. 
5. Sounds like there is a fairly large Japanese community in the area. 
6. Strawberry fields outside the base gates. Rumors of strawberries year round. 
7. A home - God has provided a home for us in CA...we will not be spending 3 months in the TLF this move while the Air Force determines what to do with our family. 

Did you catch number seven? 

Do I have a story for YOU!

 When Michael talked with the chaplain he will be replacing, Ch. B mentioned we may be interested in renting his home. He said it was the,  "perfect place to raise a family." Obviously, this piqued our interest. If you don't get base housing - most places are a 45 min drive away. Beale appears to be in the middle of nowhere.  Ch. B gave us a link to see the listing for their home. It is 18 miles from base. It is 3100 SF, sits on nearly six acres, has two zip lines, a creek you can swim in, trees galore, three car garage, 90 miles from Tahoe, huge garden spot...We dreamed....until Michael got home and we checked the listing. It is lovely. It was over our BAH and we were committed to staying at the monthly  BAH. We began to contemplate the drive, pricing in the area, and our budget. 

In the meantime Michael talked to another source and was told base housing most likely wouldn't be a good option for us. This source knew Ch. B and his home and said it was as close as we could find, and was a great home. Michael talked with Ch. B again. And.....God is so amazing! Ch. B was willing to lower the price to BAH or a little lower for us....we settled on BAH and we'll handle minor repairs.  Amazing.....at a time when our goal has been to "downsize enough to fit into a 2 room Japanese apartment" (and we are and will continue to downsize), God stepped in and plopped a dream home in our laps. It has all the things we'd each love, but never DREAM of putting on a prayer list...zip lines, WINDOWS, breakfast nook....we hadn't even begun to look for a home. Base housing would be 1700 SF and as it is privatized they would have taken our full BAH.....for the same buck we'll have nearly twice the house and a zillion times more the yard (and privacy). 

Who finds a rental like this? We had one week between Mom and Dad T's 50th wedding anniversary and leaving for Josiah and Shelby's wedding in TX to find a home and receive our household goods....this home will be available for us when we drive down to CA. 

I won't give the address, or town of 1700, because we realize we ARE moving back to the states....but ...here are some photos I've found from times the home has previously been listed.  We've had fun trying to figure out how they all go together...and we've not found four bedrooms yet. ::snort::  And even NOW, I asked Michael, "Are you sure this is the right house?" ::snort:: 

Front and side view 

Back view - deck wraps around the side 

  

Kitchen - TWO OVENS & a dishwasher! 

Family Room  or Living Room 

Entry and dining room 

Living room or Family Room - breakfast nook through arch 

Arielle says the laundry room is bigger than
their current room - I agree. 

 Speaking of big rooms - check out the master bath - it's nearly an onsen.....leading to many jokes about putting a tub outside and sitting nekkid ala onsen style...would the neighbors mind? It IS CA. ::snort:: 

Master Bedroom - sitting room on other side of fireplace

Deck off master bedroom 

Seriously, we've not a clue what we'll do with all this space. We'll have fun figuring it out! ::snort::  God simply amazed us! And to think we tried to book a ticket to Tarshish...

I really can't fathom living in this spot for two years! 

And guess where Ch. B and his homeschooling family of five children are moving? San Angelo, TX...what a small Air Force!

Ah - and as we've processed I am convinced Zander prayed us into this house. You can read about that here.

Choosing Joy!
©2013 D.R.G.
~Coram Deo~
Living all of life before the face of God...