Riddle of the Month

So, there's a little church down the street that has an old-school marquee sign.

I am SOOOOO tempted to stop into the Cracker Barrell around the corner from our neighborhood and buy the Church Signs Book as a gift for this little church.

I am not trying to be ugly. Really, I'm not! It's just that the dear soul that is selecting the quotes to place on the marquee is obviously not 'down-to-earth'. I can't say that there has been anything that I have disagreed with on the sign.

No, I haven't disagreed with any of the quotes. It's just that even as a young lass that has grown up as a preacher's kid, married a youth minister, sat in church more Sundays than I can count, taught Sunday school, been to Bible school...even with all that upbringing...I need a thesaurus, dictionary, copy of Systematic Theology and several commentaries on hand to merely try to decipher the message.

Hence, the title...The Riddle of the Month. That's what Larry and I have come to call the sayings on the little sign in front of the church.

Honestly, could they not put a verse on the marquee? Faith comes by hearing, and hearing by the word of God. Romans 10:17 Right?! I'm just sayin'!

Wouldn't it make more sense to place something that lets the mere mortals passing by know that God cares for them? That He is aware of them? That He has paid the price for their salvation?

I suppose the dearheart that has been busy thumbing through volumes of commentaries sincerely thinks that it's rather inspirational, what he/she places out on that marquee. To me it just seems too lofty to be approachable.

Rwanda Pictures - Part 4

After the last post, I knew you would want something exciting and joyous! So, what could be better than baptism?

Here is a picture of the first water going into the church baptistry. They started filling it on Wednesday (for the Sunday baptism service). The water has to be carried in large jugs on bicycles from the stream at the bottom of the hill (hill - that's what they called it...this Texas girl calls them mountains).

This is a little guys that had been winking at me all week. We don't speak the same language, but I just know that he is darling and has an ENORMOUS personality with charisma sprinkles on top!

This is the pastor praying after about 35 baptisms! How exciting is that?!

Here are the people that were just baptized. The little guy with the grey sweater and red sleeves at the very right is my little winking friend. He has his hands up over his mouth because he just realized that we are giving Bibles to everyone that was just baptized. You can't see from this picture, but the crazy lady holding the camera was blubbering and had eyes swollen from happy tears and a severely runny nose!


Praise the LORD!

Rwanda Pictures - Part 3

These pictures are not going to be for the faint-at-heart. I contemplated not putting them in the blog at all. However, for those of you that were praying for me and our team, I wanted you to SEE the gravity of the situation that the Rwandan people have faced over the last 15 years.

Thankfully, we didn't go to the Murambi Genocide Memorial until the last day of our stay in Butare. It was at this location that close to 50,000 Tutsis were slaughtered at the hand of the Hutu militia on April 21, 1994. I cannot express the grief that continues to linger in my heart after visiting this sorrowful place. Spending a week with these beautiful people and then seeing the travesty that ripped through their land was an altering event in my life, be certain of it.

The location of this horrible event was at a technical school that had not yet been completed in 1994. However, over 60,000 Tutsi people fled to the school for protection from the Hutus. The French Army was reportedly going to protect them. However, after spending more than a week there with no food or water. The French Army left and the Hutus surrounded and over took the school.

This is the main building on the campus, which now serves as a reception area for visitors to the memorial. The grounds and facility are kept by survivors from the attack.

In the dormitories and classrooms in buildings behind the main building are rooms after rooms containing preserved bodies that were exhumed from the mass graves that have been found around the memorial. The French Army returned, buried the bodies, seeded the ground and placed volleyball courts over the graves.

This picture was taken in a room full of babies. I wept and cried. Completely overwhelmed by the horror of what was before me. This was an extremely savage massacre. There were not many guns used at all. Most people were killed with machetes and stones. These babies were not killed from a distance. These precious babies died at the hand...AT THE HAND...of their murderers.

As we left the memorial, my father pointed out that the trees were all 'weeping'. Every tree we saw for about a mile had droopy, weeping leaves. Even the pine trees were weeping. It brought to mind Genesis 4:10 when, speaking to Cain "The LORD said, "What have you done? Listen! Your brother's blood cries out to Me from the ground."

Such desperation. Millions of people in Rwanda have hearts that are raw and ready for the seed of the gospel. During the victory rally at the end of the program, one of the pastors from Butare prayed that America would have hearts that are open to the Gospel. Let it be so! Please let it happen, LORD. Please let it happen before we come to this.

Pray for revival in Rwanda.

Pray for revival in America.

Rwanda Pictures - Part 2

These were the girls in my little entourage! We walked so far one day that the little children (finally) turned around and went home. The girls were so sweet, that I pulled out some gum and gave them each a piece (since the children were gone). The next morning, when I showed up, they were all waiting for me and still chewing the gum! Aren't they pretty?


This little guy was a goat-herd. Not sure if that's the proper term, but he was responsible for following his family's goats and getting them all home again by dark. He was a happy little guy that I saw often, but he was not able to go to school or church because of his responsibility. He did take a testimony one day and I saw him sitting and reading it. Pray for him!


This is Patience. If I could have chosen one person to bring with me, it would have been her.

This is the only girl I know that has teeth as big as mine! I took her picture as evidence! Horse Teeth Unite!

Rwanda Pictures - Part 1

This is my dad in front of the United Kenya Club in Nairobi, Kenya. We stayed here one night on the way to Butare, Rwanda. It was very safe (with armed guards at the gate) and very nice. Hmmm...nice is a subjective term in international travel. This was the first lesson learned!

This is the most darling set of sisters I ever laid eyes on! The oldest is 12, the middle is 4 and the baby is almost 2.


These were the posters up inside of a home that we visited. CRACK ME UP!!! My roommate on the trip pointed out that they both have the same message: "I'll be back!!!"

I think that this is Larry's favorite picture from the trip!

Over 7,000

Here is a teaser, since I have dedicated this week to getting back into the 'groove' with my own darling family!

There were over 7,000 people that accepted Christ while we were on our trip to Butare, Rwanda!

Interesting facts from the trip:


'Mazunga' (Not sure of the spelling)...this is what they call White People! I thought that they were greeting us, "Mazunga, Mazunga"...so, I waved and smiled and returned the greeting! I didn't find out until later what it meant! It's pretty bad when you come off completely dorky in another language!

We flew home on my birthday and we were flying "with the sun", so I ended up with a 33-hour long birthday! How is that for another strange blessing?!

The airport in Amsterdam has an art gallery. So, I spent part of my birthday in Amsterdam with my daddy looking at art from the 1600's. Pretty neat and definitely a once-in-a-lifetime day!

I spent a lot of the trip with a huge-case of missing my guys...but, it also broke my heart to leave the church on that last Sunday. I am now trying to convince Larry that a youth camp would go over great there. We shall see what God says about it!

More to come later. I am still trying to get everything back to normal routine here, including myself!

Much love and thank you for praying!

Cool and Weird Blessings...and, of course, Rain!

Today, I ran to gather a few last items to pack before I take off. Then, Larry and I ate lunch with Caleb at McKenzie's.

It is funny how God can bless you in the weirdest ways! Larry and I ate at McKenzie's often (weekly, at least) while we were dating and especially when we were first married. (If Larry were typing this post, this is when he would add a joke about my early cooking abilities). They even catered our rehearsal dinner. We REALLY like McKenzie's BBQ.

This is the cool blessing: Now we really love the McKenzie family. When we came to West Conroe, we found out that Darin and Kathy are members of the church. Larry and Darin get along very well and I think Kathy is just adorable! They have great children, with the oldest in the youth group, one just about to move up to youth and the youngest in Jeremiah's Sunday school class. (My dad enjoys McKenzie's BBQ as well, and has stated that perhaps there could be an arranged marriage in the 3 year old class. I'm telling you, it's awesome BBQ!)

Today while we were eating there, Darin gave me a McKenzie's t-shirt to take with me on my trip. He has a group of pictures of people (wearing the shirt) in various places around the world. To think, me...on the wall in McKenzie's! That is the weird blessing!

As we made our way back to the church it started raining. So, it occurred to me that it might be wise to check the weather in Rwanda. Hmm...I think that I might feel at home there. Highest temp will be in the mid-80s and lows in 60s, with what else but...(insert drumroll here)...Rain!

Let My teaching fall like rain
and My words descend like dew,
like showers on new grass,
like abundant rain on tender plants.
Deuteronomy 32:2

If you are reading this between the dates of 10/13 and 10/27, please pray that God will wash me with the water of His Word and that I will be sensitive to His teaching and His words while I am gone. I will have a great long trip (with no children to watch over) and I am looking forward to marinating in His Word.

Also pray for the people that He will place us in contact with in Butare, Rwanda (and all along the way). Pray that His Spirit is already hovering over their hearts and preparing them to hear and accept the Good News!

Pray for my boys and Larry! You know me...you know what I want you to pray regarding them!