Well, so much for writing regularly on this...life just seems to get out ahead of us sometimes and drags us along. In reality we all have very full days and we all must make choices about what our priorities are. For me writing here has not been a priority at this point. Although I have thought about it I haven't actually moved it to the top of the list of things to get done. No, I don't actually have a list. I do occasionally make list but I don't organize my daily life with lists. I do have some things I would like to say. Welcome Koleson Alexander Abbott! I can't wait to see you! Jessica, thank you for waiting a week so Becky could enjoy her time with us. Now begins one of the greatest adventures you will ever share with David. I remember this stage of life - it is a special time that passes all too quickly, enjoy it and cherish it.Derek and Kristi, I can't believe Abby is about to turn one! Where does the time go? I was so glad we all had the chance to spend some time together.Family is so important! People say that missionaries don't sacrifice on the field anymore because in so many places you can get almost everything you can get here in the US. And I suppose that is true for anyone whose focus is on material goods. For me my focus is more on people. We live in Chile and most of my family lives in the US (a few in Mexico). That means that I have had to sacrifice family. I don't know them. I don't get to spend time with people who are important to me. I don't get to be there for the weddings, the births, the family reunions, the good times and the hard times. It also means they don't know me. And they don't know my kids. One of the hardest things for me was realizing that my mother knew more about my sister-in-law than she did about me. I remember one trip back from the field when Mom was talking on the phone to her. I was jealous. I rarely have that opportunity. Money is an issue. Talking to her was free whereas, calling me on the field was reserved for family emergencies - in other words ... the bad news. It is hard to have a continuing relationship with someone when the only communication you have revolves around bad news. There were also other things along the way that have also highlighted the fact that family doesn't really know us. For some of you that may not be very important, but for me it is. So if you ask me if we make sacrifices to follow God's will I will always say "YES!"With that in mind I hope to write a little bio on each of us. I hope to include some history, what each of the kids is like, what they are doing now and what they are hoping to do in life. I will do my best to be honest. I have never been one of those parents that thinks her kids are perfect. As a parent that is a dangerous position to take. I hope this makes up some for the time apart.

Trust

I am glad I can’t understand God. Even though one of my goals is to know Him better all the time, I know that I will never be able to know Him completely this side of heaven. That does not disappoint me, I am glad for it. I must admit that there are times I wish I could know His mind and have the answers to some of my questions and problems.

Right now we are house hunting and I know He has a plan and has a house all picked out for us, but there are moments I wish He would just show me now. Our dollar is plummeting on our field right now and we are losing ground everyday that goes by. Between inflation and the drop in the dollar, we have lost well over 30% of our buying power since we arrived a little less than two years ago.

I have decided to view this as a chance to see where my faith stands. Do I trust God even when I can’t understand what He is doing? We say it is easy to trust when we can understand what is happening, but in truth, that is not trust. We can only measure our trust in God when we have to walk in faith, without seeing and understanding. It is a chance to live what I teach others. Can I rest in my faith in God? Or do I lose sleep and worry? I seem to be doing okay right now as to our housing situation. I wish I could say that all my tests go this well, but I can’t and this one isn’t over yet so I still don’t have a passing grade. It seems that it is harder to trust in some areas of my life than others. I am not sure why that is. It is the same God in charge. He is not less capable in one area than in another. The answer must be in me, my interest in what is happening and how much I feel I have to lose if I don’t get what I want. But then I don’t have the long range view that God has. I don’t have the all encompassing knowledge He has. This means that I am not really in a position to know what the best decision is in any given situation. There are times I think I know; I feel I have all the needed information. At those times it would be easy to lean on my own understanding. In truth I lack the clarity and impartiality that God has, I have a personal bias.

I am glad that His ways are higher than mine, that He knows what is best for me and all others involved. If I could understand God and His ways, then I could make the decisions myself. But if I could understand God that way, it would mean that He is no bigger than I, that I am His equal. That wouldn’t make me bigger; it would only make Him smaller. I don’t want a small God. I want a big God. I want to have to grow in faith each day as I walk through life. I don’t want an easy life without trials and hardships, where I always get what I want when I want it. I don’t want to forget that I have a big God that knows more than I do and that I need to trust him and walk in faith knowing that He has a plan for me.

Blah Blah Blog

Such a full life! I don't feel that I am that old but it seems like I have been through many life experiences. Surely, I have learned something and have something to share with others. I am new at this so bear with me. I hope I can be regular about writing and maybe use this as one more way to keep family and friends informed and maybe give them a little glimpse into my thoughts.