For Your Own Good

We got Noah vaccinated yesterday. He cried a little at the time of the injection, but it wasn’t until a couple of hours later that the real crying set in, followed by a slight fever as his body built up immunities to the small doses of diseases he was given. It was hard to watch him go through that, but I just held him close and comforted him, rocked him and told him it was going to be ok. At times I cried along with him because I knew he was suffering. He has never cried so much until now. It got me thinking about how God allows us to experience suffering for our own good. He is bigger than we are and knows what we need even if we see it as painful, He knows it is for our own good and that a little bit of suffering now spares us from a lot of suffering later. He knows that to allow small amounts of pain now allows us to build up perseverance for bigger pains later. He also holds us and comforts us as we go through pain and suffering, loving us and letting us know that it will be ok, things are going to get better. When we choose to follow Jesus in this life, we are told in Scripture that we are to expect suffering and that when it comes we are to rejoice in it because it will build perseverance, character and hope. So while it is hard to watch Noah go through this, I know that it will pass and that he will be better because of it. As we go through this minor ‘suffering’ of being unsettled and homeless, I know that we will be better for it and that we will develop perseverance, our character will be improved, and our hope will increase. We can also be assured that He is there, holding us, comforting us and telling us that it will be ok. "Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of compassion and the God of all comfort, who comforts those in any trouble with the comfort we ourselves have received from God." 2 Corinthians 1:3-4

These pictures are taken on the day we sent our first born to the States by herself. That was a hard thing to do and we cried all the way home after leaving her in God's hands at the airport. Now, she is doing fine in Arizona and the difficulty has lessened. It is kind of like preparation for sending her off to college, which is only 2 years away. I have a feeling those years will fly by. Meanwhile, we will have our hands full with our youngest. We have been so blessed by our children and are thrilled that Taylor has such a heart for the Lord, and we pray that Noah will grow up love Him as well.

I was talking to someone here in Bahrain the other day and I mentioned that it has been “quite the roller coaster ride” we have been on. That got me thinking about roller coasters and carnival rides in general. There are two ways you can ride a roller coaster. One way is to buckle in, smile, put your hands up in the air on the drops, screaming in exhilaration on the rolls, completely trusting in the designer and operator of the ride. The second way is to buckle in and while doing so, think about all the ways the thing was put together and all the ways it can fall apart, not trusting in the engineer or operator, screaming in fear, completely stressed throughout the whole ride. When you get off you thought it took forever and you vow never to get back on. When I was 16, I went to Missouri with Cody and his family and there was a country carnival. For those of you that do not know what that is, it is a traveling assortment of amusement park rides, game booths, food booths, etc, that get set up for a few weeks in different towns. We had a good time until we were getting on one of the rides and the operator reeked of alcohol. This ride was completely different for me because I was aware that the operator was intoxicated and I questioned his ability to operate the ride the entire time. It didn’t help that he allowed the ride we were on to hit the tree branches nearby. There were leaves and branches flying around us and the ride seemed to last forever! I didn’t go on any more rides after that one. So, as I was thinking about this ‘ride’ we are on in our lives right now, I was wondering, “which way am I riding?” Am I free and enjoying this time with complete trust in the Engineer and Operator, or am I doubting His abilities to care for us while we ride? Am I going to get off vowing never to get on again or am I trusting my Engineer to design the best life for me with rolls, drops, twists, and loops, all taking me closer to Him, building my trust even further in Him? Do I ride with anxiety and worry, thinking of the worst possible scenarios? I really had to ponder this. I think for the most part I am trusting the Engineer and Operator, but there are times when doubt creeps in and I am anxious once more. He never said it would be easy, He only promises we’d never be alone. I am so thankful that He is here with me – the Author and Perfector of my faith.

May Day. What exactly is that and why do we know today as such? Anyone have a clue? We have lived in Iran for one month now and we still have no news on our residency visas yet. Everyone is a little leery to deal with the Americans so we keep getting put off or handed off and that is what is delaying everything. So, we are still playing the waiting game. I am beginning to wonder if Noah’s bigger clothes that are in the container are going to fit him by the time it arrives or will he have outgrown them. We are still trusting God to take care of us and I know that He is in control and will provide. I read a great verse in Hebrews today: 13:5-6, “Make sure that your character is free from the love of money, being content with what you have; for He Himself has said, ‘I will never desert you, nor will I ever forsake you’, so that we confidently say, ‘The Lord is my helper, I will not be afraid. What will man do to me?’” This has been especially meaningful since the theft we experienced 2 weeks ago. God owns everything on the earth and in the heavens anyways, right? How can I expect Him not to take care of me and to provide for me when everything I have was His first, and He has just shared it with me for the time being? We serve a great big God and I am but a tiny speck in comparison, but a loved speck by my Creator.

We started Farsi classes and they have been good but a little fast paced so our teacher is making a special class for Cody and I. He suggested that Debra join us as well since she is beyond the beginner class she is in with Taylor. I am happy about this arrangement because I was about to cry during the last class, having felt like it was hopeless and going to take forever to learn the language of this country well enough to communicate. There are two Turkish girls in that class that are much more fluent and we are just holding them back, so it will be better this way for all of us. One of the girls is my age, 34, and has a 4 ½ year old daughter, stays home during the day and we are planning to get together soon. She says she lives close by too so that should be easy enough. It will be nice to hang out with her and also to practice Farsi with her or go over our lessons. She has been here two years and is married to an Iranian, so she speaks pretty the language pretty well. She is in the class mainly for the writing and reading part. It will be nice to have a friend, especially when Taylor leaves for the summer and I am all alone during the days. Cody keeps urging me to invite the neighbor over for tea and I will, but she is just going to head back to Canada soon where she lives. She just returned to Iran for Noruz to visit family. I’ve already forgotten her name! I am terrible at that and should’ve written it down. In America I am great with names, but here, they are all foreign. J

Well, it is just after midnight and I should get back to bed. I got up because I had a nose bleed. I haven’t had a nosebleed in years! Must be the dry air and all the pollution here in the city. Good night all, and pleasant dreams the next time you go to sleep. Oh, I am throwing in a couple of cute pictures of Noah too. The one where I am laughing was taken in Bahrain on my birthday. It was just such an odd day and the situation just struck me as hilarious so I laughed and apparently Cody got it on film. The other one is just precious to me.