God's goodness

Update for the new year

Remodelmania

I'm hoping I figured out how to show you these pictures!  Tom and I spent Thursday night and Friday exploring Seattle and Whidby Island in Washington....we had an amazing time!  We followed the advice of a local we met on the plane...Victor!  He was amazing as a tour guide!  He said, "okay, here's what I want you to do:  Don't go right to your hotel when we land..." and so the itinerary began!  We followed his advice and ended up walking Pioneer square, exploring a large and very old bookstore the likes of which today's chains are only cheap immitations, stopping for a drink and a rest in a place where we caught a wonderful band playing for locals swing dancing while dressed to the nines!  Very nice.  The next  morning (back on Victor's plan!) we set out for the famous Pike Street Market where a monk fish laying on ice (whose sharp teeth and jaw I stooped down to examine) suddenly MOVED and came to life...or so it seemed when the shop keeper pulled a string attached to the fish under the ice...causing me to SCREAM loudly and jump back a good five feet...much to the satisfaction of the employee and onlookers who calmly told me that they've been doing that for years!  Sigh!    On with Victor's plan we ordered breakfast in the market place at Lowells and walked to the third floor where we ate and oogled at a wonderful view of the Seattle waterfront!  After breakfast Victor's map took us out of Seattle and to an ice cream cone wait for a ferry which we drove aboard to cross to Whidby Island.  On the island we decided we could easily spend a week!  They have SCUBA diving all around it and some wreck dives and caves to explore...I'd love to return for that (with a really thick wetsuit of course!)  We ate seafood for lunch on a pier in an old town and headed for Deception Pass to view the water rushing through high rocks and a bridge with beautiful trees and walking paths all around!  Beautiful!!!!!!!  After that we headed off the island to I5 where we merged just in time to join my Dad Neff and his wife Elaine and their 3 boys en route from Portland OR to meet us and we caravaned the remainder of the way to Bellingham Washington where we visited with Grandpa and Grandma and Aunts and Uncles and Cousins gallore!  There are eleven children in my Dad's family and easily more than 50 cousins so we had quite a group!  Saturday night we got together to sing hymns and sang for what seemed like hours while Grandma played the piano.  My Dad and Aunts and Uncles sing like angels and sing in parts - so so so amazing.  I just know that is what angels must sound like!  What a wonderful visit.  Oh!  The other amazing part...we got into discussions with my Grandpa (retired pastor) regarding election vs free will and church backgrounds and took home some real "nuggets" as Tom puts it!  We still had questions and upon my return what do you suppose my BSF study was about on Monday night???!!  God is pretty obvious and clever sometimes when He gets busy speaking to us!  Did you ever notice and appreciate that?  BSF centered on I Peter and verse after verse and sentence after sentence played right into the followup of our conversations in Washington and in our home!  When I shared it with Tom we both laughed with joy at how the Lord tends to us and grows us and speaks so clearly!  We didn't even get to ask...He just pushed the answers right under our noses.  Again, God is good to us!

Is God good to us or what?!!!!!!!!

News that some joined us in the Kingdom on Easter Sunday has me jazzed!

All I can say is GOD IS GOOD TO US!

Okay okay so I have much much more to say than that. 

As many of you know, Tom and I have just returned from spending some time in Belize and in Guatemala.  We have SO many adventures and moments of growth to speak of  I hardly know where to begin!  We spent time rapelling from hundreds of feet down a rock wall and through the rainforest canopy, we hiked with helmets and headlamps in an underground tunnel for hours climbing up and jumping down waterfalls!  We wandered through Mayan ruins in Guatemala and were deeply touched by the people of that country and the struggles there.  We were reminded how much we take for granted by the cleanliness of our homes and stores and our paved roads!!!  We are so so RICH in so many ways and I wonder who, of those wandering this society with me, even begin to comprehend it.  We spent some time SCUBA diving and I can only praise the Creator at the wonder of the colorful fish and eagle rays and sea turtles and sharks and life abundant under the sea alone!  He's amazing!  What an artist!  We saw and heard and slept in the jungle with howler monkeys - uh, and a snake a little larger than I can appreciate...but how fascinating to watch it!!  We met people just like you and I who live in small small concrete homes on stilts and enjoyed getting to know them on hikes and at meal times.  We spent time on an island and God spared our lives when a mightly northern wind tossed the small open bow boat we rode.  The wakes were 5 feet and we slammed against the water - butts leaving the boat at times...holding on for dear life!  I was blessed when my husband began to pray and to praise God but I couldn't help crying while all the while remembering the JESUS can calm such storms...and has!  Wow!  What adventures!  I'll try to post a link to some pictures when we get them downloaded. 

The crux of this entry:  again...GOD is gooooood to us! 

Thanks Lord.  Please continue to guide us.  May we please you and obey you.  That's really all that matters in the end!