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| The local volcano |
This morning I’m working on a course I’m teaching in a few
weeks. My brother’s family has left for the airport. They return to
Switzerland and Germany after spending a week in Vietnam and a week with us. They
left us with many chocolates and goodies! We’ll have sweet memories for months.
It’s always a strange feeling as guests leave and we stay. The breakfast table is
cleared, beds are stripped, and I can hear the swish of sheets being washed in
the machines
… when the helper calls. She has a family funeral today: Muslims
bury their dead within 24 hours when possible. Washing floors and ironing the bugs
out of bedding can wait until tomorrow.
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| Family are friends |
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| Even when it's cloudy, if you don't live in the tropics, wear sunblock |
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| or shade yourself with an umbrella |
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| a massage with lava mud feels good! (We ran out of cash so I'll do it next time) |
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| A refurbished hot spring pool is a good thing |
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| Hanging out with family is the best |
Our guests crammed a lot into a week. (I'm too focused when working to take pics, but I catch us at play in between.)
· Speaking at a local church
· Meeting children at a local center
· Volcano walk and hot springs lunch
· A morning at an elementary school (thanks, Teacher Bridgett!)
· Prayers and small groups
· Monthly movie night
· Food – of course we shared some of our favorites!
· The guys drove to Jakarta to meet staff friends at IESJakarta
· A local hymn writer’s presentation
· The Sundanese cultural center for music, art, and dance
· Rest and hanging out
· · Shopping
· Creme bath (head massage and conditioner, an Indonesian "must do" at $5/hr)
· Creme bath (head massage and conditioner, an Indonesian "must do" at $5/hr)
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| Food brings us together |
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| Some love to perform |
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| And some love to watch |
What I learned:
· · The love of family and friends remains through
the years
· Eventually, we all turn into our grandparents and parents!
· · Nothing can beat European chocolate. NOTHING. Nothing.
· · Generous family is a delight
· · A willing heart is open to the world (good to see our great-nephews engage the city with their parents)
· · We have many places still to explore in Bandung
· · God is full of surprises: we did more and saw more than we had planned
· · Flexibility is golden – leaving some things for “next time” is fine
· · Rubbing sharp edges brings the most direct results
· · The food you grew up with isn’t the same food in Indonesia, even when the pictures are identical
· · Home is where your heart is, anywhere in the world.
· · Cooking, like riding a bicycle, is quick, useful, and a skill never forgotten
· · Helpers are a good thing (especially when you’ve cooked for 20 guests at movie night)
· Eventually, we all turn into our grandparents and parents!
· · Nothing can beat European chocolate. NOTHING. Nothing.
· · Generous family is a delight
· · A willing heart is open to the world (good to see our great-nephews engage the city with their parents)
· · We have many places still to explore in Bandung
· · God is full of surprises: we did more and saw more than we had planned
· · Flexibility is golden – leaving some things for “next time” is fine
· · Rubbing sharp edges brings the most direct results
· · The food you grew up with isn’t the same food in Indonesia, even when the pictures are identical
· · Home is where your heart is, anywhere in the world.
· · Cooking, like riding a bicycle, is quick, useful, and a skill never forgotten
· · Helpers are a good thing (especially when you’ve cooked for 20 guests at movie night)
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| Praying together matters |
 |
| We love my brother's tribe |
We love Bandung. As our guests head back to the cool temperatures of winter in Europe, I’m thinking setting up a Christmas tree might be in order ... after I have a cup of tea under the shade of the guava tree
and finish my class syllabus.
Read more:
*Keep these words that I am commanding you today in your heart. Recite them to your children and talk about them. Deuteronomy 6:6–7 ESV
*Into your hand I commit my spirit; you have redeemed me, O Lord God of truth. Psalm 31:5 NKJV
*He tends his flock like a shepherd: He gathers the lambs in his arms and carries them close to his heart; He gently leads those that have young. Isaiah 40:11 NIV
*We will be with the Lord forever. Therefore encourage one another with these words. 1 Thessalonians 4:17–18 ESV
*Be doers of the word, and not merely hearers who deceive themselves. James 1:22
Moravian Prayer: God, may your presence empower us to live boldly and to do the work you call us to do with energy and hope for your future!
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| Brothers stick together |
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| A love for animals is inborn |
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| Goodbye until next time! |
*Keep these words that I am commanding you today in your heart. Recite them to your children and talk about them. Deuteronomy 6:6–7 ESV
*Into your hand I commit my spirit; you have redeemed me, O Lord God of truth. Psalm 31:5 NKJV
*He tends his flock like a shepherd: He gathers the lambs in his arms and carries them close to his heart; He gently leads those that have young. Isaiah 40:11 NIV
*We will be with the Lord forever. Therefore encourage one another with these words. 1 Thessalonians 4:17–18 ESV
*Be doers of the word, and not merely hearers who deceive themselves. James 1:22
Moravian Prayer: God, may your presence empower us to live boldly and to do the work you call us to do with energy and hope for your future!
Lord, let our lives be testaments to our trust in you. Let our hearts be shaped by your love and our lives known by it. Amen.
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