Believe in the impossible, Believe in reality, Believe in a custom

The popular Polar Express Christmas movie and other famous Christmas movies teach us the lesson of believing during the holiday season.

If I am honest, I mostly believe in myself; but i noticed today that I let myself down often. Then I switch my belief on to another object. Similar to a life-sized umbilical cord, i try to attach my emotional nutrition to whatever I can find. As I get older, the world seems trivial, petty, temporary. So how do we live in a temporary world? We are all waiting. Waiting for what? Longing for what? When the longing remains unfulfilled, then what?

Yesterday at the mall, I gazed into in the faces of the mall workers. I was looking to see if they believe in what they are selling. Most of the sales people have a sad look that says “this object will only satisfy a temporary longing”. We try to BELIEVE it will be something to which you can cling for a while; and then the toy, gift, or experience is gone. And we go looking for something else that will keep us believing.

After living in Malaysia for several years, I have had significant culture shock coming to the USA. We had visited the USA several times but just for short summer visits. My family’s first Thanksgiving and Christmas have been exciting, but I am scolding myself for longing for many hours for this “American holiday experience” while serving in Malaysia. Missing Christmas and other holidays are so sad in Malaysia, but now that I am here; I don’t think I was missing much. Don’t get me wrong, I love seeing family and friends, but the Christmas emptiness is evident in the eyes of the people that we see all around us. The question in their eyes seems to say that they have a hope, a belief, that THIS Christmas will be the one that satisfies their longings. By Valentine’s Day, Christmas is forgotten and a new hope, a new longing, has entered into our hearts.

This year our family will be celebrating a “Gift of the Magi” Christmas. After trying to get settled in Orlando, Florida; we were given a great house to live in by a friend in Malaysia who owns a house in Chapel Hill, NC. My husband’s job in Orlando was not working out, and was not able to pay our rent, so we prayed about it and decided to move to NC. My kids have a great school, we have an amazing vehicle, and a lovely home, and dear friends who are cheering us on in our transition. Our friends (The Watsons) went through the same transition, so they are helping us so much! So many friends have helped us, but that is a whole different story!

Alas, the full-time job alludes us. I just found out that the substitute teaching job that I applied for moved to another month for all applicants due to a new director. I BELIEVED that I would have a few substitute teaching jobs by December, and now it is looking like I won’t have a job until way after December.

As for Rich, he has had resumes all over the world for about two years now. It is difficult to even get a call back. He does have a temporary job moving furniture for which we are thankful. We BELIEVED that he would have a full-time job by now.

I decided to knit a favorite pattern that I found on my knitting search website (ravelry.com)
The pattern consisted of 25 small mittens hung by a knitted cord and numbered for an advent calendar. I finished the pattern around October, and it now hangs in our new house as one of my prized Christmas decorations. I did not have enough money to fill the mittens with gifts, so I searched for ideas on the web. Instead of a gift or object in each mitten, we have added family activities. On a small piece of paper we have added a Bible verse reminding us of why we BELIEVE, and on the back a fun family activity. Some of our activities have gotten us together to laugh, pray, and talk. One activity, “camp out by the Christmas tree” has continued throughout the month. We have slept in the same room by the tree. Another one was to go star-gazing, so we bundled up and laid down in the back of the truck to watch the stars and to see the full moon rise behind our house.

BELIEVE.

My Dad passed away a few years ago, and I miss him during the holidays. As a child I believed that my dad’s strong carpenter hands would give us what we needed for our family. His sawdust smell when he arrived from work each day reminded me as a child that he would always be there. As I became older and moved away, phone calls were my connection to my Dad. Slowly I had to remove my belief that Dad was my provider and depend on my husband. My dependence switched to vertically, but not heavenly.

Our Christmas movies that teach BELIEF in Santa are quite illusive and fleeting. I agree with practicing the discipline of having hope. But HOPE in what? (Since we lost our house to a foreclosure after we left for Malaysia, we learned not to put our hope in the housing economy.) We have hope. But not in things. Not in the temporal.

We have hope that Jesus who sits at the right hand of God is intervening for us. We have hope that God has a plan for our lives. We have hope that God does not want to harm us, but he wants us to enjoy success. We have hope that what He has started in our lives, he will continue.

As I sit and write this, I don’t know what the future holds, but I have a HOPE. I BELIEVE in a God who came to earth to save us from our temporal addictions and in our false beliefs in technology and in the newest thing.

The Amplified Bible notes the word “believe” as (trusts in, clings to, relies on) in John 3:16.
In Acts 16:31 it states to “Believe in the Lord Jesus Christs [give yourself up to Him, take yourself out of your own keeping and entrust yourself into His keeping] and you will be saved…”

Keeping.

I BELIEVE with the saints in Hebrews 11, that we are homesick for heaven.

We cannot see past December now, but we have FAITH and HOPE and we BELIEVE in the God who has brought us through many travels and hardships. We BELIEVE in a God who will guide us and treat us as his sons and daughters. We BELIEVE in a God who calls us his own and who is preparing a place for us in heaven. We BELIEVE that He came to save us from our selves, our mistakes, our sins.

BELIEVE with us this Christmas.

I am typing on our new I pad. Sorry for the mistakes! The I pad will be our family computer until we are settled in Orlando.

Here is the update from our trip:

We saw God’s provision throughout out trip!

-Seat upgrades for the kids from Tokyo to Chicago
-Pepper our dog arrived safely to chicago
-Safety from the storm in Chicago
-A safe car to drive to Dayton from Chicago
-Great family to care for us in Dayton during extreme jet lag
-A free truck to use in Orlando
-Frequent flyer miles to use for a hotel as we house hunt in Orlando
-Healthy family and dog

Please keep praying about these other upcoming challenges

-Transportation to Atlanta to pick up the truck
-Inexpensive housing in Orlando.
-Rich’s flight to Texas to pick up our furniture from the crate
-Dalat reunion in Orlando
-Fundraising for our new ministry at FCA

More to come!

Isaiah 40 states the following:

Fear not [there is nothing to fear] for I am with you; do not look around you in terror and  be dismayed, for I am your God.  I will strengthen and harden you to difficulties, yes, I will help you; yes, I will hold you up and retain you with My [victorious] right hand of rightness and justice.   -  Amplified translation

As I read my Dad’s Bible, he has “fear not” underlined many times.  In his Bible, my dad (he passed away in 2003) has underlined the following words in Psalm 37 : 

Fret NOT,

 Trust,

Delight,

Commit,

Be Still,

Test,

Cease,

Forsake.   

          Next to Fret Not, my Dad has an arrow; and he wrote in his trembling handwriting “Resentful Pressure”.  My translation would be that if we fret, we allow resentment to entire into our lives and hearts.  This particular Bible of my Dad’s opens up to this page on Psalm 37.  (My mom has his other Bible at her house, and she reads my Dad’s notes for particular verses.)

So today is a Malaysian national holiday.  It is the King’s birthday.  We were going to go see a movie, but we decided to not fight the crowds at the mall.  Happy Birthday, Yang di-Pertuan Agong!  He received 30 birthday cakes yesterday; I’m not sure what the 30 symbolizes.  Sultan Mizan Zainal Abidin of Terengganu is the King’s name.  Read about his life in the link above. And yellow must be his favorite color!

This year feels like our first year in Malaysia.  Why? I don’t understand Malaysian holidays, my hair is blonde again, I’ve been using our old couch from our first apartment in my office at school, the stress was almost unbearable, the tears have started again, we are finding touristy things to do, and I am midly homesick, and we are working with the Orlando housing market again!  We are thankful for God’s promise to strengthen us and harden us to the difficulties.

This apartment building we are in now is the same place we lived for two years when we arrived five years ago – just one floor below our original apartment.  Our three-story condo was a bear to clean and pack up.  Our friends, Ben and Katie’s Middle School Principal and his wife, are letting us stay here  in this 6th floor apartment while they are away in Canada.  We are reminiscing with the kids about our two years here in 2005-2007.  The view, the traffic, the fireworks, the Hindu temple, the small kitchen, the pool, and created fond memories.  Some of our thoughts have been, “Why are we moving from Malaysia? We love this place!” 

Since we have been here in the apartment awaiting our departure to the USA, we are creating a mini-vacation for the fam.  After packing and selling our stuff, finishing the school year, and saying goodbye to our friends, this has been a great place to land for a few days.  We have made S’mores over a candle, made healthy lunches and dinners, shopped at the local night market, had friends over to swim, made trips back to the other house, and we are selling more items that didn’t make it on our crate.

Our 6th floor borrowed apartment over looks the beach, the Dalat school gate, the busy road, and many houses that are dirty and streaked with sun and mildew. A chorus of dogs barking is a constant noise that meshes with the humming of the traffic.   The blue tin roofs of the school are just visible from where I sit, and Rich said this morning over coffee on the balcony that it seems weird that we won’t go back to the school to teach.  

Ending our ministry here and starting a new one in Central Florida is exciting yet challenging.  I have made a paper lunch bag transition scrapbook for my family.  When we began the first few pages of our mini transition seminar, we ended up with many tears about leaving Malaysia. 

I think I will also create another Wall of Faith.  Back when we lost our house in the Orlando market crash in 2005, I created a Wall of Faith here in Malasyia with the Heb. 11 verses and added real-life faith stories.  We wrote out verses from Heb. 11 out of scrapbook paper, stuck them on the wall, and the verses reminded us that even the godly people in Heb. 11 were homesick!  This year’s Wall of Faith will be a reminder of our faith in HIM as we return to Florida.

Please keep us on your prayer list as we work out a few more details:

 >>> Pray  that<<<<

• Our Malaysian car will stay safe because it is already sold, but we will be driving it until we leave
• We will connect with our Malaysian friends who have become family before we leave
• Our dog will transport safely and inexpensively to the USA
• Our  vehicle transportation will work out as we drive from Ohio to Orlando
• Our crate of furniture will arrive on time so Rich can pick it up in Houston, Texas. (We have shared a crate with another family to save on the cost of living.)
• We can find a house in Orlando – we would like to buy a house so we do not have to move again. Pray that we will be approved for a loan.
• We will be in the right school district for Katie and Ben
• We can deal with our emotions as we leave our home and different cultures that we have grown to love here ( Malay, Indian, and Chinese cultures)
• We will stay healthy as we fly and travel
• For those who have prayed to receive Christ here in Malaysia that they will continue to grow spiritually
• Fellowship of Christian Athletes Fundraising:  More information coming soon!  

FCA Central Florida website

Thank you for all of your support and care! You have been so encouraging as you write to us and keep us in your prayers! 

We will continue our day of waiting for the King’s birthday to be over as we hang out on the 6th floor, but maybe I’ll see if he needs help eating his 30 birthday cakes!

The expression “I’ll tell you what!” has been a topic of discussion in our family. If you use this remark with a deep southern accent, it sounds more authentic. And if you replace you with “all ya’ll” it sounds even more impressive. So this is my “I’ll tell you what!” blog from our trip to New Jersey. The expression means in this instance – see what God is doing in our lives! I think my mom used to say this all the time. It has a positive connotation for – WOW, that it amazing!

Before we left Penang we had so much to do. I came down with bronchitis, but I got on antibiotic just in time for the flight. I almost didn’t go to NJ, but I’m so glad that I did. Rich and I had to get ready for substitute teachers, and my sub was one of my former students. ( Hung Yi was home for a few days, so I only had to communicate with one sub which made my life easier) Then our electricity went out, and we had to get a fuse box fixed. It was a bit disconcerting thinking about leaving Katie and Ben with the electricity going out, but our friend fixed it. While we were waiting for the electricity to go back on, we had several dogs barking outside our house at some yard people. Then our friend came over to borrow something, but our gate wouldn’t open becuase of the electricity going out. Our visitor made the dogs bark like crazy. Rich had gotten groceries, and had picked up KFC for dinner, so we didn’t have to cook anything. Then our water turned off the next day. Rich found the lever that had been turned off and got it working again. Our “kid” sitter is a high school senior, and she stayed with the kids.

The taxi came to our house to pick us up for our long flight. We were so exhausted by this time, we were so glad to actually be seated for a bit. Rich was glad he wasn’t driving in traffic. The taxi driver played 90′s annoying music the whole trip there. It was so loud, but we were very patient. When we got to the Penang airport, we looked around and said, “There are no kids with us!”  We usually travel with a group of students from Dalat or have our two kids with us.  It was a bit of a change for us. The small flight to Singapore is only about an hour in the air, and we had about an hour when we boarded the long flight to Frankfurt. The first flight to Frankfurt was difficult. I sat in the middle of a three seater, and I couldn’t sleep. I took three Advil, and my restless legs finally calmed down. We met a lady from NYC who was visiting her son in Singapore. She punched the chair in front of her, and she yelled at a lady for moving her bag in the over head compartment. This was going to be a long flight. When we got to Frankfurt we were amazed at the German language and the kind people at the gate. We asked for a different seat, and they gave us a whole row to ourselves! For the flight to NYC, I was able to put my legs up the whole time in the seat between us. After we arrived at JFK, it took a long time to get our bags. We were worried they wouldn’t show up, but they were the last ones on the conveyor belt. One funny thing happened. This small beagle was being used as a drug sniffing dog. The dog would walk around and sniff all the bags as we waited for our suitcases. After the dog did his job of sniffing every bag twice. He walked a few feet and then laid on the ground to get his belly rubbed. It was so funny because he was wearing an official drug sniffing vest. His handler had to pick him up and carry him away.

When we walked out of the gate into JFK, we saw a lady holding up our name on a sign. We were still in our long flight/sleeping clothes, so we stopped by the bathroom to change. She drove us from NYC to the vicinity around the church. On the way, she told us a lot about the church, but I was a bit car sick. I had to pray a ton during that ride to NJ. We drove past Coney Island, Staten Island, Queens and Brooklyn. As soon as we passed into NJ, the scenery became really pretty. It’s called the Garden State for a reason! We stopped by a cute coffee house where some of the pastors from the church like to hang out there. Rich felt at home immediately in this coffee cafe. Then we went and just said Hi to the main pastor. Arlene took us back to the hotel where we checked in.

Rich met with the pastors and walked around the church. I unpacked and took a shower. It seemed like a long time before Rich came back. Our hotel was amazing. We loved having hot water in our sink and unlimited hot water for the showers. The youth pastor and his family took us out for dinner for Italian food. We got to meet his wife and three kids. I took video of the family so Katie and Ben could meet them via video. We had terrible jet lag, and we were cold. Josh had to go to the car to get me a jacket. Then we crashed in our bed at the hotel.

On Friday, I still had jet lag; but Rich woke up early to have lunch with an elder and board member. They had a great talk; I was still in bed. We ate lunch with another board member. ( I ordered this endive salad, and it was not made correctly. I had to send it back, and then I couldn’t eat it. They didn’t charge us though. ) The board member has a 7th grade girl, so we were talking about our middle school girls.  We became great friends in a short time.

That afternoon we met with a realtor. Our time with the realtor was a bit discouraging. There is not much available that had 3 bedrooms. We would like to purchase a house but can only do so with some $$ help. We love the Nassau Street area, so we told her to look in that neighborhood. If we get the job, we will have to look at more houses. The high school has a 10 out 10 rating, but the housing is really expensive in that school district. It is also the Princeton U. district. She took us to a Whole Foods store while we were waiting to see a property. (I got licorice, oil of oregano, and something else, I can’t remember. Rich got a coffee so he could stay awake. )

We picked up our rental car after our time with the realtor. (It was such a nice car with satellite radio; we listened to bluegrass mostly. American radio is a luxury to us.) On Friday night, Rich went out to eat with Matt, both the wives stayed home because I was still too tired to go out and do very much. His wife was feeling ill.

On Saturday morning, after breakfast in the hotel, we met with the elders of the church. There were about five men, younger and older, and one woman. We sat on one side of the table and they all sat on the other. I thought it was a meet and greet, but they asked us a ton of questions. We laughed a lot, and told them about the ministry here in Dalat. After the elders left, Rich talked with the two main pastors about the details of what the job would look like if Rich was in the position. I sat in the car and listened to Christian radio. It was cold, so we had to wear jackets so sitting in the car was quite refreshing. I also worked on Senior reflections that I was to write a few days ago. (Senior Reflections are letters from teachers read aloud at the Senior tea before they graduate from  our school in Malaysia (Dalat.)

Saturday afternoon was our day to shop for the list of requests from missionary families in Malaysia. Two families asked for peanut M&M’s and our babysitter asked for Peanut Butter Cap’n Crunch. After our lunch with Nathan ( a friend from college and a pastor at the church) and his wife at a Mexican restaurant, they drove us around to see their town. We headed back to the hotel and laid down on our hotel bed which was a huge mistake. After a “coma nap” Rich woke me up, but I was drunk with fatigue. We headed to Target, and then I could finally think straight. After that fun shopping trip, we went to a movie and saw Thor in 3D. It was so weird not to have any cell phones or to not be able to check on our kids during the movie. Near the end of the movie the movie just went blank. After about three tries, the movie never started back up and we had to leave. It was interesting to watch the American New Jersey response to the movie going out. They gave us free tickets because of the movie fiasco, so we gave them to Nathan the next day. We got back to our hotel and started packing for the trip home the next day. (We had brought an extra duffle bag for the extra shopping trip.)

Our breakfasts at the hotel were amazing. We had the same server, and we got to joke with him; and he said in his NJ accent,

“I’m not going to lie, I hope you get the job.”

So if we do, I’m sure we will stop by and see Dan. So this was our last meal, and we ordered a side of bacon with a side of bacon . They even served Starbucks coffee. So our breakfasts were dreamy complete with strawberries and blueberries (Berries are difficult to find here.) Sunday morning would be the first time to see a church service at Princeton Alliance Church; we attended the 11:00 service, and we were so pleased to see so many different cultures at the church. The pastor spoke on “God at the Box Office” and talked about one movie that many people saw, and then talked about the danger parts, or good parts of the movie and how it applied to the Bible.

When we left the church we drove with one of the pastors so he could refill our gas tank before we drove to JFK. Before the trip to JFK, we stopped by the famous Nassau street. This is a street right outside of Princeton, with so much history, shops and restaurants. We ate a gyro and had Thomas Sweet ice cream as advised by a friend on Facebook. The Princeton University store was really fun, and I got a t-shirt and Rich got a coffee mug. We kept remarking that we didn’t know if we would ever be back. The stores were playing acapella CD of the college choir. We felt very collegiate and could get really excited about concerts and dramas throughout the year if we move there. I could only take video because carrying my large camera would have been too much. But Ben had told us that he was learning about George Washington marching through Princeton. We saw a small cement marker, but I couldn’t get a photo. After hanging out at Nassau street, we headed for NYC. We had good directions, and we drove through New Jersey and some fun places in NYC. We drove through Coney Island, Staten Island, and some other cool places. Rich said it was stressful, but we didn’t get lost.

When we arrived at JFK, there was no line to drop off the car. We just gathered our stuff, and took the train to the airport. We were there fairly early, stood in the internet check in lane, and we were second in line to check in. Rich asked if we could sit in the back of the plane in a two seater section. There were two seats available! We couldn’t believe it! The Singapore Airlines attendant had to call and double check, but our seats were the best we could get. During our wait at JFK, we met a college student from Africa who was a Christian, and she was on our flight. I walked around a bit while we waited so I could get some exercise.

We saw several jewish families traveling to Kiyev. They wore the traditional Jewish Orthodox clothing, and one young man was praying and bowing toward a window with his prayer book. They were so cute and they reminded us of  the movie Fiddler on the Roof. So we had an aisle seat, and almost an aisle next to the window. I always order a meal early, so it comes first, and this time I chose gluten free meal. It really helped me stay healthy during the trip. I slept for most of the flight to Frankfurt. It’s a miracle, because it is so difficult for me to sleep sitting up. The stewards and stewaredesses are amazing on Singapore Air. They bring water by every hour and snacks. They also bring hot small towels to wash up before each meal. So we always feel like we are taken care of on a Singapore Air flight. It was easier to travel without kids, maybe that’s why I was able to sleep. So on the plane, I came back to my seat after going to the bathroom, and

Rich said “Did you scream?”

I said, “You heard that?” See in my sleep deprived state I forgot to lock the bathroom door, and some guy walked in on me, and I screamed. Rich said that the whole back of the plane heard me scream.  Rich said he was worried, but he was waiting for a second scream to come check on me.  :) We laughed about that for awhile. In Frankfurt we laughed at the words for exit “Ausfahrt” and Rich wondered if it had any correlation to the other exit of the same word. The security line in Frankfurt was quite long. And the security people were moving quite slowly. We reboarded our plane and started off for Singapore. I was able to sleep again but watched movies toward the end of the flight.

The last flight took every ounce of patience in my being. We had a layover in Singapore because we missed our flight, but Singapore Air gave us a free meal because we missed our connecting flight. We ate at Burger King because we don’t have one here in Penang. (We weren’t too excited about eating because we weren’t hungry, and it didn’t feel like we needed a huge meal at that time. )

Back to the flight -

I will call this the mucos flight. Every one seemed to be coughing, blowing their noses, or making some type of noise involving mucos.  (It’s a cultural thing.  In many places in Asia, you will see “no spitting” signs.)  Even the stewardess made strange noises with her nose – kind of like coughing through her nose! I was sleep deprived at this time, so everything was bothering me. I had heard the same safety video about 50 times, and I just wanted to get home to my bed. I had a few more minutes left on my ipod, so I cranked it up, found a non-crowded aisle seat, and listened to Grammar Girl – one of my favorite podcasts.

The next few details are amazing –  The plane was not full, so we left the plane quite fast, the customs counter had no line at all, and Rich and I quickly got our passports stamped. While we were in line, we could see our luggage arriving. After waiting a long time in JFK, it was a blessing to see it arrive early even from the customs counter. We grabbed our bags but had a bit of a scuffle with a Chinese man trying to place his bags on the suitcase Xray machine. He then tried to box me out so he could grab his bag at the end of the line, and his bag wasn’t even through the machine yet! I realized I was back in Malaysia where you have to be assertive and sometimes elbow your way through lines. Rich knew to grab a ticket from the taxi counter and ran there first. The Penang airport is going through major construction, so the regular routine of the lines was all messed up. ( I realized that this would be the last time to arrive in that airport.)But Rich got his ticket for a taxi right away. While I was standing waiting, I was in a sea of faces. The Saudi Arabian enjoy vacationing on our island, so there were many Saudi women, in total covering, with their kids and families. I’ll never get used to seeing a woman in all black except for her eyes showing. The Saudi women are so curious about us, that we tend to do the staring thing where you look at each other until we look each other’s way.

So the customs line – none, two suitcases – check, one taxi ticket, next wait in line for a taxi. But guess what? We rolled up to the line, gave them our ticket and the guy pointed right to the next taxi. I promise you we just rolled right into the taxi. Now in the taxi, you don’t know if the driver knows English, or if they will know your destination. This guy was good. He took us to the school to pick up the house keys, Rich grabbed his motor cycle from school, I followed in the taxi to the house. (The kids were just finishing school, but a friend would drive them home. ) We got home finally, said Hi to our dog, unpacked, started laundry, got showers, and crashed on the couch until our kids came home. When I look back on just how God opened up our path for the ride home ( and for the whole trip), I am so thankful. I know I can trust him to help us in small areas and especially when I needed extra encouragment after such a long trip.

I’ll tell you what – it was so good to be home. The kids got their items from the USA – Katie got underwear (too big) Swedish Fish (biggest bag you ever did see) hair things, and some other stuff. Ben got socks, underwear (too small), a Sky Ball, Jelly Belly beans, and some other stuff. He brought the sky ball to school today, and they were playing four square with it this morning before school. By the end of the day, the ball was stuck in the basketball court dome.  I heard one of his friends say, “Ben you are so lucky!” as they played with the ball.  Katie said, “Are you trying to get us excited (with the shopping items) about going to the states? Because it is working!”

I absolutely loved being in my own bed and stretching out to sleep! Being strapped to a chair in the sky is not too comfortable. I told Rich that it’s kind of like being an old people’s home. You get your soft meals brought to you, watch TV and only get up to pee. And you sit for hours. I was worried about my cough, sore ear, and sore throat for the flights, but a lady at the church gave us Advil cold and sinus, and we were OK. I might have to get to the dr. for a follow up because I am coughing again.

We had such a great trip.  The job, Pastor of Spiritual Development, is a new position for the church; and Rich would be a good fit for it.  We are so thankful that they flew us there to see the church.  Rich said it cost half of his Malaysian  yearly salary to fly us out there!  So we will find out at the end of the week which person they chose.  Rich and I had so much time together, that we feel like we had all expense paid vacation.  Jet lag is not so bad for Rich right now, but my body clock is all off.  We want to thank you for praying!  We saw God’s hand through so many details that I had to type them out so I don’t forget them!  We will let you know what happens.  We are at peace with any decision.  There was another candidate there interviewing at the same time. The church is so big that we didn’t see each other.  So we are just walking through open doors to see what our next adventure will be!

Thanks again for all of your prayers!

Rich has been looking for jobs for about a year, and last week we were asked to fly to New Jersey for a job interview at Princeton Alliance Church. Rich and I will leave Malaysia on an all night flight and be in Princeton for just a few days.

I will be staying home next year, so I am just going along for support. When we return to Malaysia a few days later, we will have a few days left of school. I (Kerrybeth) currently have bronchitis, and will be starting the trip a bit worn out. Please pray that I will feel better!

Rich is excited about this interview and the pastor’s position -Pastor of Spiritual development.

We have a missionary request! Would you be willing to help us as we transition back to the USA? Our current salary is Malaysian, and everything in the USA is 3x the cost here.

We are asking for Target cards (any amount) to help us re-settle.

You could send them to Princeton Alliance Church:

Princeton Alliance Church
20 Schalks Crossing Road
Plainsboro, NJ 08536
care of: Nathan Karcesky/Rich Gwaltney
It would have to arrive before May 16. We return to Malaysia on the 17th.

We will be back in the USA in June, but we don’t know where we will be landing yet. Once we know that address, we will add it here.

If you have more questions you can email me at kerrygwaltney@gmail.com

PRAYER REQUESTS:
- that all of our packing and selling will go smoothly
- for Katie and Ben as they leave their friends and school
- for the right job for Rich
- as we finish out our school year – there is so much work to be done!
- that our flights will go smoothly as we return (with our dog) to the USA

Thanks for keeping us in your thoughts and prayers,

Kerrybeth (for all of the Gwaltneys)

I love teaching; but I need a break to maybe take some classes, hang out with family, and just take time to chill. Oh, I and would like to do some writing.

It looks like in five months we will be packing up and moving. We don’t know where we are going, and that’s where the uncertainty comes in to our lives.

Rich has a few resumes all over the world; and as the designated worryier in our family, I must over think each possibility. I have to make a conscious effort to not think too much into the future.

A few of our friends have worked here in Malaysia and have moved back to their home countries and towns. They miss Malaysia and tell us that their re-entry was quite difficult. That makes me worry even more.

My friend is sending me a book entitled “Re-entry”. The book likens the re-entry time like returning from another planet. Maybe that will help us as we transition. “Hi, I’m from another planet. Take me to your, Leader.”

One night, my husband, before he fell asleep said groggily, “I sent a resume to Idaho”, and then he fell asleep. I, on-the-other-hand, stayed up for three hours. He is NOT allowed to comment right before bed about where he sent his resumes!

Also, I am hearing about so many people losing jobs in the US. My husband is not worried. He knows that God has a plan for us. I do too, but I am reminded often.

We had to tell our school in December about our plans because they have to start planning for next year. It was so weird to tell the school so early because we were still in the busiest part of our semester.

We thought when we arrived in Malaysia that we could live and work here forever. But my health and Rich’s schooling and God’s leading is directing us somewhere else….

This Christmas we kept saying, I wonder where we will be next year at this time? As we packed up our Christmas decorations, we packed them as they will be packed in our crate.

I think some of our friends can’t figure out why we move so much. We have actually found friends here in Malaysia that move more than we do! Our moving has helped us in many ways:

1. We get to meet new and interesting people.
2. We get to downsize our clutter and get rid of extra stuff.
3. We get to see new and exciting places
4. and most importantly, we get to see God’s hand as he guides us and leads us.

When we move, I get a bit freaked out; and I worry. Did I mention that I fret often? After we arrive at our location, I ALWAYS look back and see God’s hand; and I scold myself for giving so much time and energy to worrying.

“Don’t let worry on your front porch!” – a quote from Chuck Swindoll. Sometimes worry climbs in a window and then you can never get it out of your house… Well, Chuck reminds us to not even let it on our front porch!

Finances always get me down, because as I look at what we have to do with limited resources, I cannot see how it will work out. Then I try to work something out on my own, and it never works out.

As we move from Malaysia, I am taking one day at a time. I am praying about small things, and giving them over to God. I am covering my family in prayer, and keeping lines of communication open. We are looking into a re-entry time as we arrive in _________.

Isaiah 40, 41 have been encouraging chapters for us to read. Isaiah 41:13-14 says the following:

For I am the LORD your God
who takes hold of your right hand
and says to you, Do not fear;
I will help you.
14 Do not be afraid, you worm Jacob,
little Israel, do not fear,
for I myself will help you,” declares the LORD.

How can I worry when He promises that He himself will help us! One version says that “He himself will go with us..”

So after many semesters at our school, after many friends who have come and gone, after many papers that we have graded, after 5 + Spiritual Emphasis Weeks, after 5 + Mission Emphasis Weeks, after many students we have discipled and counseled, it is time for us to head off the island to another God adventure. And next year at this time, I will be able to look back and see God’s hand in our journey.

Click here for our Christmas letter!

The letter is a PDF file from the Acrobat website.  The photos should be clearer than if I emailed it to you!  I’ve added three pages of photos, so it might take awhile to download.

We waited patiently with my sister’s family at Brock hall at Cedarville College.  We waited until 12:00 and said “Happy New Year”, chewed our finger nails and waited for a computer melt down.  Nothing happened.

Well on Saturday, I turned 40; and I waited to have a melt down, and nothing happened.  The day kind of feels like the year we all waited for the new millenium in 2000.  The prohpesy was told that all computers would be effected when the clocks turned 2000.  The old computers could not handle the new millenium numbers. Sure I’ve got wrinkles, stretch marks, and orange peel skin, but I surely did not have a melt down.

I did, however, visit a cemetary on my birthday.

After a gorgeous lunch with my family at Smokey Jack’s, we stopped by an historical grave yard on the way home.  The graves date back to the 1700′s.  Armed with my new camera and no bug spray, I walked with my family through the graves  stones.  The song Skeleton Bones by John Mark Mc Millan came to mind as I stepped over over grown paths and taught my kids about proper cemetary ettiquette.  (Ben had to pee, and I told him to stand by a tree. Maybe he was so scared he had to pee.  I got a decent ”little boy peeing in a grave yard” photo.  I think he thought it was cool.)

The historical graves held the remains of Chinese Christians who had fled the Boxer rebellion in China, the grave of the husband of Anna  from the story of Anna and the King, Thomas Leonowens; and the founder of the island, Francis Light.  We took photos and even found a grave stone that said that the inhabitant was 40 years old.  Of course I took a photo  (see above) next to this grave stone because it was my 40th birthday!

My birthday continued with a nap, and then a 80′s party complete with karaoke!  I had so much fun singing away my 30′s.  My family Skyped on the computer, and I walked them around the room and introduced them to my friends.  Thanks to everyone that made my day memorable!