10 000+ km Later

Our poor Trailblazer doesn't know what to think. We're usually a rather low mileage family, but over the past five weeks we drove 10 155 km (6 214 miles). We went from Newfoundland to Orlando, Florida and back home again, with stops in Nova Scotia both ways. Driving through New York and the Jersey Turnpike on the Sunday of the July 4th holiday weekend was my least favourite portion of the entire trip. Let's just say that in our small Newfoundland town there isn't a single traffic light and all the streets are a single lane in each direction. Not so in New York or on the Jersey Turnpike!

For our 20 nights in Florida, this was home.

  I know, we were really roughing it.

The pool in the backyard was wonderful. We swam almost every day, mostly in the mornings before hitting one of the many theme parks after lunch. Aiden and Zachary became quite proficient swimmers with all the practice.

Three Sandhill Cranes visited daily. Not knowing anything about family habits among cranes, we guessed it to be a family unit, with mama, papa and the baby, who didn't have the distinct red patch on the head.

These little geckos were everywhere. We loved watching them, especially the ones who climbed the mesh around the pool and puffed out the pouch under their chins.

 

Universal Orlando's The Hulk

We rode every roller coaster on Disney and Universal property, many of them multiple times and in the front row. It was a blast! By far my favourite was the Chinese Fireball side of Universal's Dragon Challenge. Aiden and Zach are tall enough for all the rides, but Nathan couldn't go on the big coasters, so his favourite was Expedition Everest at Disney's Animal Kingdom park. We rode that one 6 times in an hour, just before closing. We'd ride, then head right back to the entrance where there was no wait at all and just ride again.

We also spent 6 nights with my parents and 2 with my grandmother, during all of which I took 0 pictures. Mom is an avid photographer though, so the visit was well documented. The boys met, or were reintroduced to, lots of my extended family, though nowhere near all of them. Mom is from a family of 6 and Dad from a family of 13, so that means lots of aunts, uncles and cousins. It was great to see everyone again.

And yes, I did sew some of those many, many hexagons I basted before we left! I had 23 flowers finished before we left and now all 56 are done.

55 of the 56 - I had already started adding blue hexagons to one when I took this picture

I also added the blue ring around 12 of those flowers. That means I am almost 1/4 of the way through adding the blue ring (14 being the 1/4 mark).

We still have another few weeks before school starts again. Hopefully that means I'll have time for lots of stitching - probably with my machine, rather than by hand. I think I'll take a break from the hexagons. It is meant to be a long-term project after all!

I hope you've been enjoying your summer too.

In the Lord I take Refuge

A Psalm for the Week...

Psalm 11

In the Lord I take refuge.

How then can you say to me:

"Flee like a bird to your mountain.

For look, the wicked bend their bow;

they set their arrows against the strings

to shoot from the shadows

at the upright in heart.

When the foundations are being destroyed,

what can the righteous do?"

The Lord is in his holy temple;

the Lord is on his heavenly throne.

He observes the sons of men;

his eyes examine them.

The Lord examines the righteous,

but the wicked and those who love violence

his soul hates.

On the wicked he will rain

fiery coals and burning sulfur;

a scorching wind will be their lot.

For the Lord is righteous,

he loves justice;

upright men will see his face.

Meeting Needs

Devotion for the Week...

A couple of years ago I met a woman who was staying in our town for a month while her husband did a work term here. We met up again a few days later at the library, where she had a stack of quilting books. Since she was a fellow quilter, I invited her to join our weekly quilting group.

"Do you guys take sewing machines and everything?" she asked.

I laughed. "We take our machines and cutting mats and bags full of fabric. We look like we're going on a long trip, but we're only going for 2 hours!"

I remembered that conversation when I read Luke 9:3. Jesus sent out the 12 disciples to drive out demons, heal diseases and tell everyone about the kingdom of God. We don't know how long they would be gone, but Jesus had very specific packing instructions. " He told them: "Take nothing for the journey - no staff, no bag, no bread, no money, no extra tunic."

What faith that must have taken. For me, a two hour quilting session requires as much equipment as I can carry. A weekend away with my husband and three boys takes four suitcases, plus another bag of books and toys. Even just a day trip means books and snacks, not to mention my hand stitching kit and Paul's coffee.

Unlike for quilting, the Twelve didn't need special equipment. Jesus "gave them power and authority" (Luke 9:1) so they didn't need to carry anything to accomplish their mission. But Jesus told them not to take money, food or clothes. They left Jesus not knowing where their next meal would come from or who would welcome them into their home. Perhaps they were accustomed to that uncertainty. After all, they traveled with Jesus from town to town already. They were probably already familiar with how people welcomed and cared for visiting teachers. They had faith God would meet their needs.

Fortunately, God still uses people to meet the needs of others. While I have never traveled empty-handed, bags of second hand clothes for our boys have been offered several times, usually just days after I realized most of their clothes were getting too small.

It's not only our physical needs that God meets through other people. Paul wrote, "Praise be to the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of compassion and the God of all comfort, who comforts us in all our troubles so that we can comfort those in any trouble with the comfort we have received from God." (2 Corinthians 1:3,4) How many times has a friend's word of encouragement lifted my spirits just when I needed it?

Generally speaking, we don't like needing help. Many of us find it hard to ask for help, even after others have offered. We'd much rather be the ones doing the helping. Regardless of our preference, we can be sure that, over the course of our lives, we will have times when we need help and times when we can offer help.

Which are you today? The one with needs or the one able to meet needs? If others are offering you help today, whether it be comfort, encouragement or material things, you can praise God for His provision. If you are helping others, praise Him for the extra He has given you so that you can give to others.