Beautiful Two

Two is a significant number, isn't it? Without two feet, we couldn't walk. Without two eyes, we couldn't see. Without two hands, we couldn't reach for or hold anything. Without two ears, we couldn't hear.

On Sunday afternoon, these pictures were taken to represent the significance of two--these are Britta's feet, my feet, and Priscilla's eyes. Beautiful things come in twos right? ...

... Yes, but recently though, it has been difficult to call these last two weeks beautiful. Sometimes the end of something good is seemingly not beautiful at all...

Britta is preparing to go back to Nebraska after spending eight years with her family at BFA. She has to say goodbye to the place that has become her home. She has to say goodbye to friends that she is not sure she will ever see again. This is hard. This is painful. She only has two weeks left.

Liel will only be a middle school dorm for two more weeks. It has been such a good place for our 10 middle schoolers. They have been safe here, cared for here, nurtured here, and loved here. Why does it have to end when it has been so good?

As I process these things, it has been so helpful and so healing to remember who God claims to be. On Sunday evening, we had dorm devotionals and we talked about the Lord as our Good Shepherd. It was so appropriate to remember the Lord as a Shepherd who cares for His sheep because considering the circumstances of Liel closing as a middle school dorm and nine of our students transitioning into a high school dorm, we are all a bit worried and anxious about next year. We don't know where the Lord is taking us. We don't know who our dorm parents will be. There is so much unknown. There is so much uncertainty. It is hard to let go of this good year. It is hard to imagine that next year could be more beautiful or better. BUT, we are all learning that the Good Shepherd is trustworthy. He knows exactly where the green pastures lie. He knows precisely where the still waters flow. It is in His nature to take us there, not to keep us hungry and thirsty.

This moment can be beautiful because He doesn't change in His care or concern for us. He will always be our source of nourishment. He will always be leading us, even if He requires us to leave something good behind and keep pressing forward.

We do believe that the One we are waiting on will not disappoint us.

So, as we wait, we pray that the Lord will gives us eyes to see the beauty of

His character and His plans.

...........

One more quick story about another "Beautiful Two..."

This morning, I was encouraged by something so true and yet so simple. G.I. was speaking with me about someone who had given him advice yesterday. This man said, "All that the Lord requires of you, G.I., is to love the Lord your God and to love your neighbor as yourself." These two commands, alone, are what the Lord requires of us. G.I. was so comforted by these words because no matter how difficult school can be, he knows that he will always be able to love the Lord and love his neighbor. In that moment, life suddenly became manageable for G.I. He was given purpose again. These two beautiful commandments free him. After our conversation, he walked out of the door to catch the bus with a smile on his face :)

A.J. the Miracle Boy!

A.J. on defense

May 6, 2011

JV Girls vs. 8th Grade Soccer Game

So, I have three weeks left of school and I still need to introduce you to two more students! This afternoon, I wanted to highlight A.J. for the true miracle that he is to our Liel family but also to his own parents, Warren and Laura. This past fall, we anticipated welcoming two military students to our dorm--Laura and Roman (R.J.). R.J.'s application had been received and accepted. He and his mother were moving to Germany and his mom was to be stationed at the U.S. military base in Stuttgart. On the day of our students' arrival, R.J. never came. The director of ResLife at BFA received a call explaining that R.J. had decided to remain with his mom and go to school on base. This left us with one open bed. Who would fill it?

While Bob, Sue, and I were getting to know our 9 new students while also processing the loss of a student that we had expected to join our family, A.J. was helping to move his 15-yr-old sister into the Palmgarten dorm in Kandern. A.J. had applied to BFA, but since there was no room for him in the boarding program, he would be required to wait a year and attend Italian schools before he could join his sister, Olivia, at BFA. But, the Lord certainly had other things in mind... A.J. would go back to Italy with his parents, but only for a day to get all of his things! The same day that A.J. was helping to move his sister into Palmgarten, he received a call from the ResLife supervisor inviting him to stay at BFA after a student (R.J.) suddenly withdrew his application. And so, A.J. joined our family at Liel!

As months have passed and as the school year is about to end, I think I can speak for all of the staff at Liel and say that life certainly wouldn't be the same without A.J. The Lord was so good and so generous in allowing us to share life with A.J. Though he is certainly a quiet and introverted young man, there is such incredible depth to his personality.

In so many ways, A.J. is your typical middle school boy--he loves sports, he will eat everything (up to 8 servings of lasagna...haha, seriously!), his room is messy, he doesn't like to wear shoes around the house or a jacket to school on chilly mornings, his feet smell, and he loves to sleep! And yet, he is also unlike most boys... he is always singing worship music around our house (while he does his homework, while he plays on the computer, while he washes dishes, while he is shooting basketball...), he has memorized passages of Scripture, he always has something profound to say, and the Lord has given him such confidence about sharing his adoption story...

You see, before A.J. was even born, his biological mother had already made plans to give him up for adoption in Mexico. At the time, A.J.'s adoptive parents were serving as American missionaries there, planting churches and taking in Mexican children as their own. A.J. was Warren and Laura's second child to be adopted from Mexico.

I love A.J. and I am so impressed by his character because at age 14, there is no shame as he shares his adoption story. It is not something to hide. It is not something to be embarrassed about. Instead, it is something that he rejoices in! He is Mexican and he is proud of his heritage, he is American after being raised by the parents whom he so affectionately loves, and he is also Italian as he supports his parents' current ministry outreach. A.J. is exactly who God has created him to be.

One more encouraging story about A.J...

This past Sunday, we were talking about God as 'Light of the World' during our dorm devotions and I challenged our students to think about practical ways that they could be light. For just as Christ called himself the Light of the World (John 8), He also explained that we too are to be cities on hills, lights that shine before men (Matthew 5), and people who declare the praises of Him who called us out of darkness and into His wonderful light (I Peter 2). After several students had shared their thoughts, A.J. said something quite unexpected, but incredibly true and profound, "Maybe, it's not about 'doing' anything. Maybe all we need is just to 'be.'" I see the light of the world in A.J. just as he is--he is kind, compassionate, loving, respectful, and gentle. He is a young man whose mind has been transformed by Christ. A.J. doesn't have to 'do' anything to be light, he just is light--it's so natural, so real, so authentic. Because of what God has done and because of the love and forgiveness that A.J. has received, there is remarkable light shining forth in this young life.

And so, I praise God for A.J. and the great encouragement he is to me. He is one of the most precious little brothers that an RA could ever ask for :)

A.J.

September 2, 2010

Runners! Take your mark... Get set...GO!

The countdown: 3 more weeks of school!

To illustrate the significance of the number 3 , Laura and I thought our pictures this week should be taken with the 30 km speed sign conveniently marked on the street in front of our house. And now that our track season has ended, we also thought it would be neat to show the three positions that a runner takes as he or she prepares for a sprint off the blocks... check out the following three pictures as Laura demonstrates:

Position 1, Taking the mark...

Position 2, Getting set...

Position 3, Taking off!

.......................

While there are still three weeks of school left, the BFA Track season has ended, but let me give you a quick update and brag about my girls for just a second :) ...

Last week, Laura, Priscilla, and I traveled to the Frankfurt International School with the BFA track team for the first track meet of the season open to junior high athletes. Laura ran the 1500m race in 6:10 minutes and the 800m race in about 3:05 minutes. Priscilla ran the 100m dash in 14.31 seconds, the 200m dash in about 31.03 seconds, and the 400m dash. I was incredibly impressed by their performances! And for me, it was such a blessing to be able to travel with the team in order that I could coach, encourage, and cheer for these stellar athletes.

Next Spring, I hope to continue coaching and perhaps be a bit more involved if I can. I have found track to be such an intimate sport and I love that fans and coaches can watch and attend to one athlete while he or she competes against others. Team sports are certainly great, but track and field is just so unique. I get goosebumps watching some of our athletes run and truly push themselves to the limit. In one race, a spectator can see an athlete showcase his or her greatest skills and talents, which is not always the case in team sports since individual performance is typically dependent on the team. I have so much respect for these BFA students and I look forward to our next season together.

Priscilla, Lauren, and Laura

Frankfurt, Germany

May 7, 2011

4!

4!

The Liel Family (minus Marshall and Lauren)

"4!" may be equivalent to 24 if you see this as an equation and solve it as a factorial, but for us at Liel, "4!" means something so much more. It's official: four more weeks of school...four more June birthdays to celebrate...four more weekends together...4!

These last four weeks are extraordinarily special at Liel for several reasons. Next year, it looks as though our middle school dorm will be converted to a high school girls dorm to accommodate the abundance of applications for the high school girls boarding program. Just as the life of a third-culture-kid (TCK) seems to be defined by change, Black Forest Academy is also a place of constant change. I think we were all sad to hear the news about Liel, but we are certainly going to embrace these last few weeks together. We can be happy and glad because we have made history at BFA! Never before has the school opened a dorm specifically for middle schoolers. We are also unique in that we have a co-ed dorm with an awesome mix of guys and girls... AND we represent the smallest dorm with 10 students and 3 staff members (which has allowed us to be a more closely knit family). We can also rejoice that with this change, 10 more missionary kids will have an opportunity to receive an education at BFA. For these young women, all of the change is worth it.

If you can pray with us, we would be so grateful. Pray for the placement of four middle school students who have been accepted into the boarding program next year (it looks as though a home placement is most likely where missionaries in the area will open up their homes to house these students...one of our own, Laura, is included in this). Pray for our own 8th grade girls at Liel who now have the option of staying at Liel after they already decided to go elsewhere. Pray also for a couple to come to BFA to serve as dorm parents--Residence Life at BFA is still searching for willing servants to fill these vacant roles. And finally, please pray for me. Though, I will remain at BFA for another year, I am not sure where I will be serving. My placement is dependent on so many factors and so, this is a season of change again for me... a season of uncertainty... a season of waiting on the Lord.

Though I do rejoice today because as I was reminded in the Gospel of Luke (ch. 12) that the Lord has instructed us to not worry about our LIFE. It seems easier (in part) not to worry about tomorrow, but to not worry about my LIFE? This is radical. This is hard. Though He does give me the desires of my heart, He certainly doesn't include me in the planning of my life. He doesn't ask about my thoughts on converting the Liel dorm. He doesn't warn me about the possible loss of my current position, ministering to middle schoolers. He just acts. He just decides. And sometimes, He takes away. In the midst of this, He also asks me to replace my worry with belief. After all, He says, "Do not be afraid, little flock, for it is your Father's good pleasure to give you the kingdom." This is a promise that I cling to.

And so, despite the change, I am more at peace now because I know that I will SEE the kingdom in the children that I will get to serve next year, regardless of their age or gender. It's simply not worth worrying about... My Jesus came to GIVE me the Kingdom, certainly not to take it away.

To the One to whom all children belong,

Lauren

The girls say "Guten Morgan!"