He's My Brother!

A funny thing happened the other day. The weather was beautiful over the weekend and our cul-de-sac was abuzz with activity. Several of our neighbors were outside riding bikes and shooting hoops at our basketball net. At one point, M and I heard Mercy interrogating someone in the backyard. A very bold boy whom we had never seen before, was riding his bike in our backyard and Mercy rightly wanted to know what he was doing there. Before my hubby could make his way to the back door, I heard the boy ask L," Well, what's he doing back here then?" The boy was referring to Odesco who was storing his bicycle back in our shed. L confidently answered,"He's my brother!" The look on this kid's face was priceless. You could see the wheels turning and he just could not make sense of our family. By this time M had made his way outside and graciously but firmly told the boy he needed to ride his bike in the court...not in our yard. We soon learned this boy was a friend of a neighbor and when he saw Odesco come into the backyard he assumed it was a 'free for all' not realizing that this is indeed Odesco's home.
This just made me realize how accustomed I have become to being a mom of 2 African children who bear no resemblance to me. In certain settings I do expect questioning looks but it is a bit unusual to happen in our own backyard!! L thought this boy's response was a hoot. L and Odesco are such good buddies-they actually choose to share a bunk and when we separated them due to sickness, they were not happy campers. They both emphatically reported they couldn't sleep well when they were apart. They have their moments, but over all they are good buddies!

They are definitely a study in contrasts :)

Silly boys!!

There you have it: Another day in the life of our conspicuous family :) Thanks for stopping by!

The Roots are Growing Deeper!

The roots in the heart of our blossoming sunflower are growing deeper and I did not want to miss an opportunity to give glory to God for the mighty work He is doing. It reminds me of the struggle a butterfly must go through when it breaks free of its chrysalis... it is painful to watch such toil, yet through the struggle God brings new life that would not come about any other way. Twice this week, there were 'issues' that typically would send Mercy into what I would call 'meltdown mode'. The storm clouds were brewing but Mercy responded to the whispers of the Holy Spirit in her heart, humbled herself, and asked forgiveness. A situation that typically would have taken all day (really!!) to resolve was over in about an hour. Absolutely amazing!

Then today, Mercy was confronted with her 'dark heart' (her words) once more and we were able to talk about how God's light can chase away all the darkness in her heart. I reassured her that darkness resides in my heart also and this is why I am so desperate for a Savior. We spoke of the profound truths outlined in Romans 7..."I do what I don't want to do, and I don't do what I do want to do"....

She told me she is "just like Justin" from the cd series Down Gilead Lane. When I asked her to explain, she admitted that just like Justin she gets stuck in 'dark pits'. This reminded me of the quote I have been meditating upon that we read many times this week in a Corrie Ten Boom biography. So, I shared, "Mercy, that sounds like what Betsie said to Corrie in the book we just read...

"Remember, there is no pit so deep that God's love is not deeper"

Her face was full of expression as she connected the dots that God had orchestrated to reveal such deep truths to her. Then she shared,"It's like my favorite song(by Natalie Grant)

There's no such thing as perfect people

There's no such thing as a perfect life

So come as you are, broken and scarred

Lift up your heart and be amazed

And be changed, by a perfect God

Mercy has loved this song since last summer and to see her processing all of these truths and putting it all together is so very encouraging. All of these pieces falling into place point to a gracious God who longs to shower His mercy upon our Mercy...these were not unrelated random happenings ...no, God is at work and He is masterfully weaving all of this together so that a broken heart can be healed by Him alone.

Isaiah 43:18-20

¹⁸ "Forget the former things;
do not dwell on the past.

¹⁹ See, I am doing a new thing!
Now it springs up; do you not perceive it?
I am making a way in the desert
and streams in the wasteland.

My heart is so grateful for these 'streams in the wasteland' and it is good for me to recall them now before I am tempted to lose sight of the new thing He is doing.

P.S.~ The pictures above are from our sunflowers last summer... the previous summer Mercy was so distressed when her beloved sunflower was ripped right out of the ground during a violent summer thunderstorm...this provided a very vivid picture for her of what happens when roots do not grow deep and drink up the nutrients of the soil ...it also provided a great word picture for us to encourage her to grow her roots deeply into the soil of her new life in our family. We started the sunflowers pictured above from seed and I was so thankful the Lord blessed our efforts with many tall, strong sunflowers that all weathered the summer's many thunderstorms. She knew it was because 'their roots grew deep'. What a joy it is to see her own roots digging into the soil here.

Never a Dull Moment!

L has been lamenting for the past 2 days that his front tooth was really annoying him as it wiggled and jiggled. I encouraged him to yank it himself or to wait contently( ie: no complaining) for it to fall out on its own...he wasn't thrilled with either option. Well, today it was taken care of...by his brother-during a wrestling match on the family room floor. I truly wonder if our Liberian children do indeed have a future in dentistry...Mercy helped G lose 1 tooth in a swimming collision one summer day, Odesco assisted with the loss of another with a pretend boxing match gone awry, and then today he took care of L's problem....for our kiddos who are slow to lose their baby teeth, this method seems pretty effective!

Wiggler no more...thanks, Odesco!!

Odesco with the 'prize'...L's tooth in a ziploc bag.....nope, never a dull moment around here :)