The prerequisites of hope

I was reading Romans 5 and came across this verse:


^"3 Not only so, but we also glory in our sufferings, because we know that suffering produces perseverance; ⁴ perseverance, character; and character, hope."


And it hit me like a ton of bricks. I have been praying for perseverance, good character, and especially hope. But boy do I hate the suffering.


 I think that in general, we as American Christians, have a real problem with suffering. I know that suffering is an inevitable and necessary part of life, and that God uses it to bring us closer to him, strenghten our faith, sharpen us, to be able to help others in the future, and for other good purposes that may or may not be revealed to us in this life. But we are still humans. And pain is never easy. 


I can't really make any profound conclusions from this verse, but I do know this- for those of us who are going through some kind of suffering, we can rejoice and be encouraged. 


Because our suffering produces perseverance.
And our perseverance produces character.
And our character produces HOPE.

Yay for GOOD NEWS!

Dear blog friends,

I am pleased to announce the we (finally!) heard from the visa people- David's papers have been recieved, all is in order, and we've been given his visa interview date....it's in ................

We have been waiting for this for SO LONG and we are SOSOSOSO excited! Because this means that Lord-willing, we will be traveling to the US soon after his interview! I don't think I've ever been more excited for Fall. :)

the little things

Sometimes it's the little things that are most encouraging.

Sweet emails from friends.

Doing some cooking and cleaning because my knees don't hurt so bad today. (YAY!!)


Skyping with family.

It is Friday.

and

Honey/butter toast for breakfast with my husband’s "art" on top.

Happy Friday Everyone!!!

Save up some Sunny Days

As promised- here are some pictures from my time in the US this summer. When I was younger, I remember my Mom always telling me on really pretty summer days, "We need to save up these sunny days in our minds so that on the cold, rainy days this winter, we can remember the sunny memories." (Her wording was more eloquent than mine, but hopefully you get the message.) That is something that I've always remembered. So here are some of my "sunny days" from this summer.

With Mom at the Farmer's Market- love the fresh produce and flowers!

With my brother where he worked this summer-check out that huge field of sunflowers behind us!

I am thankful that my brother was home from college for most of my visit. Here, underwater at our aunt's pool, courtesy of Becky's new underwater camera :) And, I caught a fish! After getting the bait stuck up in the trees about 40 times, I finally figured out to get the bait IN the water, and by some miracle I caught a fish. (Courtesy of Becky and Michael who had to show me the right way to cast... it has been awhile since I've "gone fishin")

While I was able to see almost all of my NC family, I was also able to spend time with some out-of-state family!

 And, I was able to catch up with lots of friends. This couple came to visit me from Tenn and I got to meet their new baby. Aren't they a cute family?

What "sunny day memories" do you have saved up?

Lessons learned from a wheelchair

As some of you may already know, several months ago, I had a knee injury. Long story short- my kneecaps are misaligned, which is something I have had since I was born, but it wasn't a problem until I started a (rather) intense aerobics class. And a few days later- OUCH. I am thankful that we know exactly what it is, and I am thankful that- if all goes as the doctors plan- in 4-6 weeks I will see some improvemet. I am also thankful that it is something that will heal on its own with exercises, ice, heat, etc, and NOT with surgery. So those are the good things.

It was also nice being in the US recently, where life is in general more "handicap-friendly." I remember in the past thinking, "Is it really necessary that every building have an elevator?" Well I certainly have a different perspective on things now! In the US, places like Wal-mart and malls have wheelchairs you can borrow, which I definitely took advantage of! (One of my last days in NC before coming back to VZ, Dad went with me to take the inevitable last minute "Walmart Run." He was in a hurry for some reason and we almost ran over approximately 4 people. So if you were recently almost plowed over by a wheelchair in Walmart recently, my apologies, that could have been us.)

But having to be off my feet for the remainder of my life for the past 5 months has been a very frustrating. And I can at least be on my feet to do the simple things! But I can imagine how horrible and depressing it must be for those who are limited to a wheelchair for months, years, or even their whole lives.

So, here are some things I have learned. I hope to implement these lessons into how I live, and maybe they will inspire you to have a different perspective too :)

-Yes elevators and ramps are needed.

- If you know someone who is limited to bedrest for whatever reason, go visit them, and maybe take some cookies :) !

-If you see someone in a wheelchair/ crutches, hold the door. Opening a door while manuvering crutches is difficult.

-For those of us who are able to walk, and aren't limited to a wheelchair, we should not take good health for granted! We should take advantage of those legs and exercise :)

Healthy (and delicious!) Blueberry Muffins

My visit to NC this summer was timed nicely- right when blueberries started getting ripe! They are so healthy (yay antioxidants!) and also so delicious.

Here's a recipe that I found at Sparkpeople.com. Click here to go the the site and see nutritional info.

Notes:

I didn't use flaxseed because I didn't have any at the time, so it won't ruin the recipe if you don't have them, but they are healthy- and don't change the taste much I don't think. I know they have flaxseed at Trader Joe's at a good price.

Also, these are "healthy" and light, not as sweet or rich as a cupcake. I loved them- and with fresh picked blueberries, they were amazing. Let me know what you think!

Chef Meg's Blueberry Flax Seed Muffins 
These healthful muffins freeze well. Low-fat buttermilk and applesauce help lower the fat, and the whole-wheat flour and flax seed add fiber. Make a batch on the weekend for a quick and tasty breakfast, then serve with a piece of fruit and a glass of low-fat milk. 

INGREDIENTS
1 cup quick oats (do not use instant
oatmeal)
1 cup low-fat buttermilk
1 cup whole-wheat flour
1 tsp baking powder
1⁄2 tsp baking soda
1⁄4 tsp cinnamon
1 tsp salt
1 egg
1⁄4 cup unsweetened applesauce
3⁄4 cup brown sugar
1 cup blueberries, washed and dried
1 tbsp flaxseeds, roughly ground 

DIRECTIONS
1. Preheat the oven to 375° F. Spray the muffin
pan with nonstick cooking spray or line the
wells with paper liners.
2. In a small bowl, combine the oats and buttermilk
and let the mixture stand at room temperature
for 5 minutes. In a medium bowl, combine
the flour, baking powder, baking soda, cinnamon,
and salt; mix with a fork to blend and set
aside.
3. In a large bowl and using a hand mixer, beat
the egg, applesauce, and brown sugar at medium
speed for 3 minutes.
4. Blend the oat-buttermilk mixture into the egg
mixture, then stir in the flour mixture until just
combined (try not to overwork the mixture).
Fold in the blueberries. Fill muffin cups 3⁄4 full
and top with a sprinkle of ground flaxseed.
5. Bake 15 minutes or until a toothpick inserted
into the center comes out clean.

Summer Catchup!

Dear blog friends, it has been a while! A lot has happened over the past few months. For most of June- July I was able to go home and visit my family and friends in NC! (In fact, the reason that prompted my last blog post about "cravings" was that I knew I would be going home soon to enjoy those favorite foods, and I SO wanted to share that I would soon be in the US- but not all of my family knew I would be home, so I couldn’t share it on the blog and risk spoiling the surprise!) It was a really great summer for me and such a blessing to spend time with family and friends.  I was able to do a lot of typical summery things- going to farmer’s market, fishing with my brother, 2 friends’ weddings, cookouts, swimming, etc. I was also able to be with my family on both of my parents’ birthdays and the 4^th of July, which made it extra special! Pictures coming soon!

Now I am back in South America. My husband and I hope to be making another international move within a few months, but this time to the US! We are just waiting for the final steps of his visa to go through- which has been a long and frustrating process, but we know that God is in control and His timing is perfect. David has never been to the US, and we have been waiting and praying for this for years. (We would appreciate your prayers as well for the remainder of the process!) So right now we are in a “holding pattern”, waiting for the visa to go through so that we can travel. But we are thankful to finally see the light at the end of the tunnel, and to know that we are almost there! I am going to update my blog more frequently, so stay tuned as we begin this new chapter of preparing for, and making the move to the US!