Missionary Monday ~ You Paid How Much?!!!!

 

You paid how much?!

 

I found this king size Reese's Cup and paid $4.50.

And it was worth every penny!

 

So, it got me thinking how much are we missionaries willing to spend on those little comforts from home.  I asked the question in our facebook group, and here are some of the responses...

 

Peanut M&M's - $6 (not for a huge bag either!)

Hershey's Syrup - $12

Twizzlers - $1 for 3 pieces

Jiff Peanut Butter - $10

Tortilla chips - $10

Salsa - $5

Pickles - $13

Velveeta - $15 (one block)

Dr. Pepper - $2 can

 

(This is just the short list!)

 

 

 

Julia sent these photos of her daughter, Chloe, 3, with a box of 24 packs of cookies.  She says, "Notice it includes Nutter Butters which I haven't seen here before, and is a favorite of ours. We paid $669 pesos for this which comes out to $16! Yes, a lot, but we are hiding them, only to take out for special occasions!!"

 

 

 

How much are you willing to pay for your favourite food?!

 



A Tangled Mind???

Well, we are at the end of our “tangled tongue” stories until someone else passes some more along.  I just have a couple more for you today.

When learning Spanish, a missionary was trying to say, “Excuse me,” but kept saying, “Spit on me,” instead.

When playing a game of Uno, a missionary told the other player that they were very ugly instead of unkind.

Another lady was teaching a Christian charm course for young ladies.  She was telling them about face cream and how moisturizing can help keep from having wrinkles.  Instead of wrinkles she said warts.  Those girls were horrified!

My husband and I have been learning Fante, the tribal language in our area.  One of the major problems with Fante is that the same word can mean many different things.  It just depends on the tone of voice in which it is said and the context in which it is used.  For example, the word “dɔ” (pronounced daw) can mean 1. To heat up; 2. To love; 3. To be fed up; 4. To dive; 5. To swear by something; 6. To seek refuge; 7. Deep.  Forget tangled tongues; I have a tangled mind!! Just when I think I am beginning to understand, I learn a new meaning for a word.  I may never master Fante, but I will keep trying.

If you have a language blooper or a funny story that you would like to share with us, please e-mail them to me at lo@consfords.com. Please include the name of each family member, your field of service, and a picture of your family if possible.

Until next week, keep your sunny side up!

Strange Prayers and Strange Answers

Have you ever prayed for something really, really different? I mean something between you and God that was not exactly “normal”? I know I have. I  have prayed for keys to be found, for lawn mowers to start, for a parking space. (I live in Europe. Very few spaces here!) And, God has answered these atypical prayers with yeses.

It was brought to my attention that the Bible’s people also prayed some really strange prayers.

Here are just a few of them:

Abraham prayed that God would not destroy the righteous with the wicked (Sodom and Gomorrah). He prayed if there were 50, 45, 40 (getting bolder now), 30, 20, or even 10 righteous, that God would spare those cities.

God’s answer: “Shall not the Judge of all the earth do right?” (Genesis 18:22-33)

Eliezer, Abraham’s servant, was sent to find a bride for Isaac. He prayed for God’s choice to give him water and also water his camels.

God’s answer: Before he was finished with his prayer, Rebekah came to the well with her pitcher on her shoulder. She gave Eliezer water and offered to water his camels. (Genesis 24:12-15)

Joshua prayed perhaps one of the boldest prayers in history. He asked God to halt the sun and the moon until Israel could finish the battle against the Amorites. (Right. I mean, ask God to alter the rhythms of nature so we can beat the enemy! This one is really crazy.)

God’s answer: The sun and the moon stopped for “about a whole day.” Obviously, God didn’t think it was so crazy. (Joshua 10:12-14)

Elijah held a showdown on Mount Carmel. He had the people prepare an altar unto God and soak it with water three times. Then, Elijah prayed, LORD God of Abraham, Isaac, and of Israel, let it be known this day that thou art God in Israel, and that I am thy servant, and that I have done all these things at thy word. Hear me, O LORD, hear me, that this people may know that thou art the LORD God, and that thou hast turned their heart back again. (Verses 36-37)

God’s answer: Then the fire of the LORD fell, and consumed the burnt sacrifice, and the wood, and the stones, and the dust, and licked up the water that was in the trench. (Verse 38. Story in 1 Kings 18:20-39)

Peter asked Jesus, “Lord, if it is You, let me walk on the water to You.” (My paraphrase of Matthew 14:28)

God’s answer: Peter did indeed walk on water for a while. Then he got scared, took his eyes off of Jesus, and began to sink. Jesus stretched out His hand and rescued Peter, and you get the impression that they walked together back to the boat. (Matthew 14:28-32)

I am certainly not trying to motivate anyone to pray silly, outrageous prayers, but have you ever prayed for something out-of-the-ordinary? Did God answer?

God says He will answer prayers that are according to His will. And this is the confidence that we have in him, that, if we ask any thing according to his will, he heareth us: And if we know that he hear us, whatsoever we ask, we know that we have the petitions that we desired of him (1 John 5:14-15).

We usually know His will by the direction we get in His Word, the Bible. Sometimes, His will might be revealed to us through opened doors (or closed doors), those circumstances that show us what is right.

Always, God hears and answers. Sometimes, the answer might be yes. Other times, it is no. And yet other times, we need to wait on the Lord in consistent prayer, asking Him for wisdom and guidance. God’s timing and His will are always, always best.

Dare to pray a “strange prayer.” Dare to ask God for what you really need.

If it is God’s will, you just might see an amazing answer!

And all things, whatsoever ye shall ask in prayer, believing,

ye shall receive (Matthew 21:22).

Hitherto have ye asked nothing in my name:

ask, and ye shall receive, that your joy may be full (John 16:24).

******************************************************************

This was a guest post written by Lou Ann Keiser,

one of the newest members of our missionary group.

Please visit her blog: In The Way.

Holidays: Stateside! Valethanksmas Birthdependeaster Day

(This is a continuation of the Holidays: Thriving, Not Just Surviving Series.)
Holidays: Thriving, Not Just Surviving Part 1
Holidays: Thriving, Not Just Surviving Part 2

Happy Valethanksmas Birthdependeaster Day!

That's a mouthful, isn't it? Before we left the States, we celebrated one last holiday with the family... ALL the holidays rolled into one! (This idea works great for those heading to the field for the first time, or for those on furlough who will not get to spend each of the holidays with family because of short furloughs or travelling needs.)

Lunch Time: Fruity Chicken Salad Sandwiches

Although we don't eat a ton of sandwiches for lunch here, this is a favorite whenever we do!
I first had this sandwich many years ago out on the lake with a friend's family.
It took me a while to track down a similar recipe, but I'm glad I did!

Feel free to substitute exact kinds of fruit, as those can be a bit tricky on the foreign field!

Fruity Chicken Salad Sandwiches

1/3 c. mayonnaise
salt and pepper to taste
2 tsp. apple cider vinegar
2 c. diced cooked chicken
1 lg. Red Delicious apple, cored and diced (use whatever kind you have!)
1 c. red or green grapes, quartered (and seeded, if necessary)
                          OR
1/2 c. raisins, if grapes are unavailable
1 Tbsp. lemon juice
8 slices bread
4 lg. lettuce leaves

In a small bowl, stir together the mayo, salt, pepper, and vinegar.
In a large bowl, combine chicken, apple, and grapes.
Sprinkle with lemon juice.
Add mayo mixture and toss gently.
Toast bread.
Scoop chicken salad onto bread and top with lettuce leaf.

Enjoy!

Missionary Monday ~ Come Link Up Your Blog

Every once in awhile, I like to give you the opportunity to link up your blog.

This is a great way to meet other missionaries

and for them to meet you.

So, please link up your blog; then take some time to go say hi to the others.

Don't forget to leave a comment on their blog!

Oh, and it would be awesome if you would share our link.

(You can get the code in the sidebar on the right.)

Tangled Tongues – Watch out for those Squirrels!

This week, we have another story from Rita Vernoy. She and her husband are missionaries in Paraguay.  She blogs at http://ritaloca.blogspot.com.br/.  They went to language school in Mexico for a year before going to Venezuela as missionaries.  They had to leave Venezuela due to political turmoil and are now serving the Lord in Paraguay.

When they first arrived in Venezuela, Rita’s husband took the pastorate of a church.  This meant that he had to prepare four sermons a week.  His Spanish was decent, but he still had to put a lot of effort into sermon preparation. 

One Sunday, he stood to preach on the subject of “Pride.”  He had a three-point outline and had put a lot of effort into preparing the sermon.  For thirty minutes, he preached about pride.  He told the congregation to search their lives for pride.  He told them that there is no place for pride in the Christian’s life.  It was a very challenging message.

The problem was that the congregation was not responding appropriately.  Many of the people had big smiles, and some were trying not to laugh out loud.  Some looked at their feet during the entire sermon. The adults kept their laughter contained, but the children were laughing.

Rita’s husband was so discouraged with the spirit of the congregation.  He knew that God had wanted him to preach on pride, and he did not understand the problem with the people.  Rita had to break it to him gently that instead of preaching on pride, which is “orgullo” in Spanish, he had used the word “ardilla,” which is the Spanish word for squirrel.  The mental picture that those people were getting would have been quite funny – Christians hunting out and killing squirrels, God hating squirrels, and Christians not having room for squirrels in their lives!

The following week, her husband did not even want to preach.  He was embarrassed about his sermon from the week before.  However, he was the pastor; so, he had to swallow his “squirrels” and preach anyway!

Thank you for sharing that story with us, Rita!

If you have a language blooper or a funny story that you would like to share with us, please e-mail them to me at lo@consfords.com. Please include the name of each family member, your field of service, and a picture of your family if possible.

Until next week, keep your sunny side up!