Faithful God 2

October in the year of our Lord 2010

October was one of the quickest months we have ever seen. It flew by in a flash--partly because we were exhaustively busy. It is the high season for tourists in this region and we just happen to work with three entities that cater to tourists of one stripe or another. The month has been good, but we look forward to saner times.


As the month wound down, we re-evaluated our weekly schedule, realizing that we were giving too much time to all of the people we were volunteering with (that is, more than we had agreed on before we came). We realized also that when working for several bosses, each one can't quite grasp the extent of our other commitments and thus usually ask us for more than we can give. When we approached them, all of our friends were gracious and allowed us to work times that were mutually beneficial but not too overwhelming.


We have also been praying a lot for deeper friendships. Over-committing to work, we didn't have enough time to really just be with people outside of a working context. With our new schedule we now have more time for that.


One of the disappointments we had this past month was that the Arabic class fell through. We were hoping to learn Arabic, but the class times conflicted with our other commitments. Instead, we will need to learn Arabic on our own or find tutors in the coming months.

We continue to spend two and a half days at Nazareth Village, packaging for the gift shop, leading tours, being shepherds, cooking first century foods, helping with online media, etc. We also work 20+ hours (together) at the Fauzi Azar Inn, welcoming, cooking supper, baking cakes for guests, building relationships with other volunteers and local staff, cleaning etc. In addition, we also spend 6 hours with Jesus Trail, painting and fixing signs, writing, and orienting hikers. On the side, we take a grad class. We love that our schedule has two days where we let our souls catch up with our bodies. On Sunday and Monday we worship, sleep, journal, blog, grocery shop, clean house, wash clothes, have long conversations and cut hair(when needed).

Thank you God for…

...the friendships that we are developing and growing into.

...falafel, knafe, hummus, and whole wheat pita (hobis aswad).

...our friends, Jihad, Islam and Hassan; Marwa, Evone, Mary, Johanna, Ben, Sandra, Miriam, etc.

...a few more words understood in Arabic.

...days of rest!

...all those people that we know pray for us and show us what it is like to be loved.

...the church everywhere.

...letters, comments, and Facebook messages!

...newborn donkeys, stubborn sheep, jumping goats, little children, and smiles that reach across all cultures.



You are our hope, our life, our strength and reason for living.

Our hearts, minds, bodies, and souls are Yours.

May we bring You glory every day.