Thankful

Thankful for
- 3 Boys home for Christmas
- 2 Girls willing to come home too
- 1 Wife who has been with me for 30 years
And for
- 3 Persons in the Godhead all working toward having us home
- 2 Revelations of His will, the Word and Nature
- 1 Blessed Hope of eternity in His presence with no darkness at all
TRH

Kyrgyzstan Adventure

Lyn in a gorge north of Lake Issykol in Kyrgyzstan
Newly opened SDA training institute in Tok Mok Kyrgyzstan at the ribbon cutting ceremony
Gorge south of Lake Issykol Barry, Jomart, Lyn and I hiked up this gorge to a glacier about 20 km round trip.
Another hike along a river north of Lake Issykol
The Kyrgyz SDA church where Barry goes. Note the lack of pulpit and pews. Just carpets and a short stand for your Bible.
Azamaat Huidaibergenov director of conservation for Central Asia and Barry at their family's country house holding a branch with rose hips from their rose bush. These went for tea for Christy

Ala Arche south of Bishchek beautiful hiking here with Barry,Jomart, and Azamaat who knows every plant and animal and all about them which makes for slow but intensely interesting hiking.

Papa

For the past 30 years I've had the privilege of working with Papa. He and I have accomplished some fairly impressive tasks. We laid a half-mile of six inch pipe line and installed a complete irrigation system in Oak Glen, California. We also installed several 10 to 40 thousand gallon water tanks as part of the system. We built a barn for Papa and a workshop for me and cut many cords of apple wood. Then in 1989 we moved from California to Maine. Every year since Papa and I have cut and split at least 8 cords of wood, that would be a total of 160 cords which would be a stack 4 feet high 4 feet wide and about 1000 feet long. Papa helped me this year, we just cut, split and stacked two big beech trees and one huge maple tree. We have also with the help of Paul, Barry, and John cleared a garden spot and built a barn from wood cleared from the garden and sawed on-site. Papa has tended the garden each year and hauled innumerable loads of seaweed from the shore to the garden. He has helped can a multitude of jars of peaches and applesauce and tomato sauce. When we remodeled our house including the removal of a large chimney and two fireplaces, Papa cleaned every brick. Papa has always been up for a trip or a new adventure. He was up on a slalom water ski on his 80th birthday. He loves to read and loves a good joke even when it is on him. When I needed help he was always there usually before I asked.
Two winters ago our neighbor called asking for help to get her husband up off the floor where he had fallen. Papa (though he was older than the man who fell) went to help, on the way slipped and fell on the ice; despite his fall he went ahead and helped the neighbor up. He never said a word about his fall. The next day I noticed he wasn't as agile as usual and on examining him found 3 fractured ribs. He never uttered a word of complaint though he was in obvious discomfort. In fact I've never heard Papa complain about anything or anyone, ever. Perhaps the greatest gift Papa has given me though is his daughter; as a wife, she has his same unfailing cheerfulness and sense of adventure. Papa is 90 now and won't be with us forever but I thank God for him and his daughter every day.

Rmantraining

Giving Thanks

It is Friday evening November 21. The leaves are gone from the trees and raked from the yard. Only the brussel sprouts are left in the garden and they are at their best. I've started making fires in the shop for Merlin and Rollo. Merlin is now more eager to get into the shop than out as he likes the warmth. I put a rug on top of Rollo's crate. Merlin hops up there and sleeps contentedly. Papa brought 2 loads of wood from the pile by the barn and we stacked it in the shop all ready for cold nights. The stone oven did good service this morning and we have two fresh loaves of wood-fired oven baked bread sitting on the counter. It has a nice thick crust when baked at 600 degrees fahrenheit. Mom is sleeping curled up on the couch under John's alpaca blanket. Rollo had a bath today and for a special is in the entry lying asleep on a bath towel.
All of our 5 gallon buckets are full of oats, wheat (red and white), barley, rye, sesame seeds, beans (red kidney and pinto), lentils (persian and red), split peas, rice (jasmine and basmati brown), chick peas, dry soybeans, shredded coconut, raisins and currents, and date pieces. We have about 250 quarts of apple-raspberry and apple blueberry sauce in stacked in various places around the house. A delicious lasagne with pimento stuffed olives, dried tomatos, garlic and basil sits in the kitchen awaiting tomorrow's fellowship dinner.
I've just lit the fire in the soapstone fireplace and am getting ready to do a little reading. but what I'm really thankful for is that we could lose all these things, be out in the cold with no home and no place to go and still have riches untouchable by any earthly event. As Paul wrote from the prison in Rome, "But God, being rich in mercy, because of His great love with which He loved us, even when we were dead in our transgressions, made us alive together with Christ (by grace you have been saved), and raised us up with Him in the heavenly places in Christ Jesus." So by faith no matter where we are no matter what our situation we can be in heavenly places with Jesus. Now that is something worth giving thanks about.

Wings as Eagles

One windy morning this week Lyn and I were fixing breakfast when we heard an eagle call very close to the house. We looked south across Long Reach and saw a pair riding the wind current about forty feet above our blueberry patch just off our deck. The wind was blowing from the south and apparently as it hit the point 100 feet or so from our house it swept upward giving the eagles just the updraft they needed for an easy ride. It reminded me of the text "But they that wait upon the Lord shall renew their strength they shall mount up with wings as eagles". And this one, "The wind bloweth where it listeth, and thou heareth the sound thereof, but canst not tell whence it cometh, and whither it goeth: so is everyone that is born of the Spirit."

Ride then, ride on the Wind of the Spirit, ride on to transformation, renewed in His strength.

sabbath sunset at long reach