A Thankful Heart...a work in progress

Have you ever thought about what you could give up?  How about what you could give up easily vs. with great difficulty?  Short term vs long term?  With thankfulness or not?!

This week we have been faced with frequent, multiple power outages, usually in the evenings at dinner while the sun is setting, while we are trying to get a glimpse at the Olympics (they have a 14 or 16 inch tv that they have hooked up with satellite in the evenings).  We were getting somewhat used to that....  Then the water stopped coming out of the faucets.  Hmmm.  I am a self-professed germ freak, but it doesn't take medical degrees to know the public health effects of a large group of people in one place with no water....many of whom are already suffering from traveller's diarrhea.  I won't go into the explanation of why it happened, but we had a day with no water to speak of, and now we are collecting the water from (no longer hot) showers for flushing toilets.  We still have food - last night I had rice, cole slaw, and mango for dinner, and we have pb&j in our room to supplement.  Lest I sound too pitiful, we did find some chocolate bars that were made in South Africa and some cookies that are quite good.  :)   So, what's my point?

Paul tells us in Philippians that we should rejoice with him.  His circumstances were infinitely worse than the ones I describe!  He was in prison - and not a cushy US prison with warm beds, clean water, and plenty of food - but a filthy Roman prison.   Here Paul is speaking in Philippians 4:

Rejoice in the Lord always; again I will say, rejoice!  Let your gentle spirit be known to all men. The Lord is near. Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God.  And the peace of God, which surpasses all comprehension, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.

And again in Colossians 3:17:
And whatever you do, in word or deed, do everything in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through him.

When I read The Hiding Place, I was struck by how Corrie and Betsie ten Boom could truly apply this while in a German concentration camp.  Dutch Christians, they were there because they risked their lives to help smuggle Jews out of German occupied Holland - a testimony to their lives of sacrifice.  If you have read it (and I highly recommend it!), you will recall the story about how Betsie and Corrie applied 1 Thessalonians 5:16-18:   Rejoice always;  pray without ceasing;  in everything give thanks; for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus.  They thanked God for the horrible lice in the women's quarters!  And not because they FELT thankful, because they didn't really.  Later, they saw the benefit of the lice, but they thanked God before they understood the why of the situation. 

Am I able to do that?  Not well.  Here is a photo
that I took last night of the moon - really beautiful! 
But when I got back to the room and looked at it,
it occured to me that so often I am looking up at God
in heaven through a thorny attitude!  And it detracts
from His majesty and beauty.  
















So, today I am choosing to say thank you for the water shortage, and the electricity outages, and the monotonous food, even though I don't FEEL like it; and I will be thankful, also, for the things that do come easier:  the warm friendships, our overall health, warm dry beds, the cultural instruction we are receiving that will be invaluable, the food from the grocery, this beautiful safe campus, our relationships with all of you, and God's love and relationship through Jesus!  Please join me in praising Him for His love and continued provision (even if we want more or something different!). :)

Love,
Sarah

The USB modem we use to communicate - I am VERY thankful for that!!! :)

This is actually a seed that litters the ground here.  I thought it was trash for the first week here. If anyone can identify it, please let me know!

They are all over the ground like this.

Chai time - every morning and afternoon!  We will miss this. :)

Passion fruit.

A large avocado tree on campus.