Happy New Year!

Lamentations 3:19-23

¹⁹ I remember my affliction and my wandering,
    the bitterness and the gall.
²⁰ I well remember them,
    and my soul is downcast within me.
²¹ Yet this I call to mind
    and therefore I have hope:

²² Because of the Lord’s great love we are not consumed,
    for his compassions never fail.
²³ They are new every morning;
    great is your faithfulness.

This is a new year, and new beginnings.  Last year brought some major changes in our lives, but the verses above reminds me of God's faithfulness. Just like the cactus blooms every year, God's faithfulness blooms every day.

Today's blog entry is more a wrap-up of the last year.  There was a major change for me, I started taking classes towards finishing my BA in Interdisciplinary Studies at Liberty University.  The first semester of school went well, I finished it out with A's in all three of my classes.  This semester will be more difficult, since I'm taking the first of three dreaded math classes.  I will persevere  though and make it through that class.  I'm going to work hard, and hopefully pull at least a C, maybe even a B.  Physically, I had a lot of challenges, starting with a badly sprained ankle in January, followed by rotator cuff issues and a major issue with my knee that kept me from exercising pretty much all year.  That HAS to change this year!  One part of my blogging this year will be a running commentary on my fitness goals and accomplishments. (Corrected errors, thanks to my oh-so-wonderful editor-in-residence :) )

Ian, Abby, Jodie and Chuck at Winterhaven

Christmas Night

Last year was, well, tumultuous. Started the year with the stress of Chuck and Ian moving out here, homeschooling Ian, which did not work out well, dealing with issues and finances.  Chuck started with AFNI within a few weeks of getting here, which was a huge answer to prayer and he seems to be doing very well there, having been selected for several different pilot programs and has gotten at least one raise so far.  We're praying that more raises will be following soon.  Jodie and Abby moved out in May, and in a lot of ways things got better, as Jodie was offered a teaching job within two weeks of moving. Amanda, Matt and Eli (more about her later) are all working at Cottonwood Elementary, the same  school where Jodie is teaching music.  They are special needs paraprofessionals, and while the work is stressful at times, they all love it in their own way. 

Matt graduated Magna Cum Laude from Arizona Christian University with a BA in Christian Ministries, but it took him a while to find the job at Cottonwood. He's doing well and is considering heading back to school for his Master's degree in Special Education. He's finally getting more involved with the college ministry at church, as well as working with the children's ministry.  This year, he needs to find a second job to help pay off his student loans and get a new car, so he can move on with his life. 

Amanda and Eli

Amanda did not do well in school, and that is presenting a huge challenge.  She's doing very well in her job, and is actually working a second job two days a week at the mall.   She is going to meet with a counselor at Pima tomorrow to try to figure out her next step in school.  She really needs to figure out a plan for continuing.  She is considering changing to a certification program in Early Childhood Education, and I think that would be best for her at this point. 

Eli is Elizabeth Hartwig, a MK from Ecuador who moved in with us in June.  She was going to ACU, but could no longer afford it and transferred to Pima. We gave it a trial run, and discovered it was working out, so she is rooming with Amanda.  Her parents, Earl and Cathy Hartwig, just moved from Ecuador to Papua New Guinea where they are assisting with rebuilding a hydroelectric plant at a hospital there. As I tell her, she's my daughter of another mother, and has become a welcome part of our family.

Mark and Dianna on Christmas

Dianna - same as always.  She's now the paralegal manager at her job and while she enjoys the additional money, it is a lot more stressful and she's now salary as opposed to hourly, which sometimes isn't that great.  Mark - no real changes, but Corey is finally working, which is a blessing.  We are still actively praying for the Lord to reveal himself to them in an unmistakeable way.

Grandpa Tom and Aiden

Andrew and Delilah are doing well.  They welcomed Aiden Robert into the family on August 9.  He's a doll!  As grandbaby #1 for Tom, he already is getting spoiled :)  We saw them in September when we went out to North Carolina, then again this Christmas when they came out here.   Andrew is still in the Marines, but with some medical issues is on desk duty, and possibly looking at a discharge.  At this point, he's ok with that - now that he's a Dad, the thought of deploying and leaving Aiden behind really bothers him.  Again, like Dianna and Mark, we are praying for their spiritual awakening.

Tommy, well Tommy is being Tommy.  He is having major difficulties.  He recently moved to North Carolina to live with Delilah and Andrew, but it doesn't appear that is going to work out very well.  Some major steps need to be taken, but he has to want to take them.  Some of it is going to be forced on him.  Much, much prayer is going on about him.

Tom's job continues to be stressful.  We are praying fervently for a new position.  He has a lead on one, and just completed his resume for it, but it will not open up until March.  He has three more years to go before he can retire, as that is when I will be able to receive Tri-Care and my retirement.  The door is still open for him to enter ministry at Wycliffe, but I can't push him through it.

We are actively involved in a new ministry at church - one of the more difficult ones.  We are co-facilitators of Divorce Care.  I didn't realize just how much the ministry would bring all the issues I thought I had dealt with to the forefront once again.  I think those issues are just coming out because of the various kid-issues we've had lately. At any rate, it's not pleasant.  We have a great team to work with though, Brian and Sara Feather, Cheryl Alexander and Nancy Perry.  God is blessing the work, and I look forward to see what happens this coming year.

I'm still involved in Friendship International, our ESL ministry, but my level of involvement has decreased with my school responsibilities.  I'm on a holding pattern there this semester, waiting to see how school goes.   We are getting a new building, so we have quite a bit of work to do this next two weeks to prep for the move.  There will be major changes for the teachers, which will be challenging.

Dad and Betty

The last major change was Dad's move to Kentucky.  He had lived out here for a little over a year, but in April moved to Kentucky with his bride, Elizabeth Sweeney.  They are doing well, but I miss our weekly lunches. 

I'm starting a new reading plan.  I did pretty well last year sticking to one, especially when I read first thing in the morning and then started school work.  Classes start again on the 14th, but I want to be disciplined enough with reading that the habit is well-engrained by then.    I do have another blog idea that I really need to write, and am going to work on it some more this afternoon. For now... keep plugging away.