The twins, the weather, what’s missing

Brittany, Andrew and the girls got to the farm just before I got home yesterday evening. Unfortunately, I did not have much time to visit. I had only an hour before I needed to leave for church. In that time, I needed to feed the animals, haul feed for the pigs and goats and take a shower. Mama was moving between preparing food for the dinner at church and visiting with the girls. In the end it all worked out, but it was a mad dash for a bit. When we have our mission’s conference, we serve dinner to our missionaries and our speaker prior to the service each evening. It is set up so the entire church can participate. Everyone brings enough food for themselves and some extra. Most of the time there is a lot extra. It gives each family in the church time to visit with the missionary families in a more casual, unhurried setting. We have come to enjoy that as much as the services each evening.

Mama stayed home last night to help Brittany and Andrew get the girls settled in. It was a good move on her part. It took some time just to get the paraphernalia associated with the twins brought into the house and get set in place. Then Andrew had to repack the car in preparation for their early departure this morning. Victoria and I got home from church just as the girls were singing their bedtime song. Zoe will not kiss me because of my beard. Sophia let me kiss goodnight her but only reluctantly. They are still both excited to see me every time I walk into the room. They just do not want me to snuggle them with my facial hair. It makes for some very funny interactions.

Brittany and Andrew were off to the airport at 5 am. They are not going out of the country for this little vacation. They chose a destination in Florida. They should be on the beach by lunchtime. Meanwhile, back at the farm, Mama will have to balance care for the animals with care for the girls. My personal opinion is that the animals will take second place in that order. It is forecast to rain two or more inches over the next two days. That always adds an interesting dynamic to Mama’s daily routine. Not only does it make the feeding routine more problematic, but Mama has to deal with the dogs going in and out of the house for the breaks they need to have through the day – since they are not allowed to come into the house with wet paws. Hopefully, the forecast will be accurate, and the rain will not start until much later today. By that time, Victoria will be home to help.

Last night one of the missionaries that has attended our church for the last year – they have been studying at BBTI – gave their presentation. In the video, the wife of this young couple stated that, in her late teen years, as she got serious about serving the Lord, she promised the Lord that she would serve Him even if it meant staying in the United States. That statement struck me. She had grown up in the Ivory Coast. That was home. To her, America was a foreign land. I am wondering about our grandchildren now growing up in Honduras. Will America be a foreign field to them in the years to come? That would not be a bad thing, just something to consider when they are visiting state-side; away from their home in El Progresso, Honduras. On the flip side, we have a missionary in Mexico who is relatively new to the ministry there who battles homesickness for the US in a very tangible way. It affects their ministry there. The teenage child they took with them to the field is struggling with a sense of displacement that is almost overwhelming to him. It burdens his parents as they serve on the field.

Mama and I have been struggling lately. There seems to be a constant nagging in our hearts to be doing more. We have never been sure how to approach that unsettling feeling. Last night, through the preaching, I believe God revealed to me what we have been neglecting in our walk with him; prayer. Not general prayer, substantive, specific, focused prayer. Prayer that takes hours, not minutes, to accomplish. It is something I used to practice in my life but have drifted away from the work of prayer.

It is time to pick back up the mantle and begin again to really pray.